New Bloom - Tailsmo Fanfic
by DarkyLonewolf
Summary: Cosmo has returned back to life four years after the final battle against Dark Oak. It seems that the relationship between Cosmo and Tails shall begin to bloom anew...But the four years that had passed weren't exactly kind on Tails' mind and soul, and it's up to Cosmo to repair the young fox's broken heart... (Meh summary as always. :P)
1. Prologue - Bloom Anew

_The prologue is written from Tails' point of view. The rest of the fanfiction is told in a more normal narrative. I don't know, I thought it would be an interesting writing choice. The whole "four year wait" thing was inspired by ThomasElias' "A Joyful Reunion".  
_

"Well, guess I'll finish it tomorrow, then."  
I packed up all my tools just after tightening one last bolt on my plane's exterior. I've been working on it for a week straight now – it's not like this upgrade was particularly important, or the circumstances asked for a better plane, it's just that… It helped me get my mind off of a particular person. A person who I fell in love with four years ago…Who had sacrificed her very life to save this world. Just as our relationship began to develop, it had to unexpectedly and abruptly come to an end. And I was the one who helped her fulfill her fatal destiny. She died by my hands… It's a long story, really, and I don't feel like recalling all of it.  
Soon enough, I just got bored of work. Yeah, I guess her absence makes even my favourite field of work seem completely empty and devoid of any interest. And with that, I put my tools down and headed back into the main part of my house. Upstairs, in my bedroom, there was left a tiny reminder of that person – a little rose. All that was left of that person was nothing more than a small seed, that later grew into a rose that looked fairly ordinary at first…But somehow, this rose had greatly exceeded the lifespan of a normal one, as it was still alive and blooming. Not that this meant anything to me – having a false hope is worse than having no hope. That rose was a remnant of her flesh and blood, sure, but I doubt it would be enough to revive her. Two of my friends attempted to revive her after her sacrifice, but to no avail – the tiny white seed was all that was left of **her**. At least I can honor **her** memory…  
As I went upstairs, taking each step rather lazily, I slowly began recalling all the memories I had about that girl. As much as I tried to think about the more pleasant ones, I just could not – all the memories I remembered the most, unfortunately, were two unpleasant moments of our lives.  
One was when a certain person – ironically, he was one of the two people who tried to revive her later – had attempted to kill **her**. We were clearly outmatched, and despite our best efforts, he managed to catch up to us anyway and had attempted to finish her off…Only for someone to intervene at the last possible moment, and that's when I learned the painful truth about **her** being a sleeper agent for our enemies. The pain of her unwilling betrayal was almost nonexistent – I couldn't care less even if she turned out to be secretly working for them on her own volition. What really pained me is hearing **her** scream from the pain of realization of her unwilling betrayal. It took me some effort to reassure **her** later on that we will do everything in our power to defeat those who made her an unwilling spy, and that we would still protect **her** no matter what. And the other unpleasant memory was…The day of **her** sacrifice. I tried my best to repress that memory. I tried my best to move on. I tried my best to just forget about all that happened…But such memories don't just fade away. And this is when I understood the pain of unwilling betrayal myself – I had to practically kill **her** off by my own hands so that her sacrifice would be complete. The cold feeling of sorrow I had when I saw **her** practically get disintegrated together with that damned monster she tried to weaken at the cost of her own life… The false hope I had when I noticed that someone actually attempted to revive her… And the crushing breakdown I had experienced when I saw that their attempt was unsuccessful.  
While I was reminiscing of those painful memories, I almost didn't notice how I was already standing in front of my bedroom door. I sluggishly opened the door, a very slight smile crossing my lips - getting to see the only remnant of **her** that was left in the mortal world was the only thing that made me feel like there was something worth living for. Unfortunately...It seemed that even that was taken away from me - the plant was absent from the window shelf.  
"No…" I immediately looked around under the window in desperation. No pieces of a broken pot, no ground scattered across the floor. I was so busy with the small details that I didn't notice the elephant in the room - the window was open for some strange reason. I immediately rushed downstairs and out of the house. If the plant fell out of the pot, I'm pretty sure it can still be saved. Just got to make it in time… As soon as I approached the area just slightly under the window...  
I saw **her** again – lying there, leaning against the wall of the house, still having that green and white dress on her that she always wore, completely unchanged. In fact, she even had her red crystalline oval-shaped amulet attached to her dress - the same one that she used to set her sacrifice in motion. She was still much of the same. However, it did seem like **she** aged through these four years that had passed, as she was a bit taller and her body was more developed, her green leaf-like hair was long enough to reach just barely below her shoulders, and the twin red buds on the sides of her head were on the verge of blooming.  
I couldn't believe my eyes. Was that another hallucination I had? Did her death really hit my psyche so hard that I began deluding myself like this?I rubbed my eyes with my hands, closing them and reopening them again – **she** was still there, lying under the window silently. I ran over to **her** and ran my hand across her hair – as obvious as that may sound, I actually felt it. I hardly ever got to touch her, and only once did I ever touch her hair back then, but I still remembered it all too well, and it certainly felt the same as before… **She** was breathing quietly, so I figured she was probably just unconscious. I breathed a sigh of relief at that, but then I thought I might as well take her back home. Making my way upstairs and gently placing her in the bed, I sat down next to her. Soon enough, it seemed like she was close to waking up.  
"Are you alright, **Cosmo**?" – I quietly asked to see if she would respond. She turned her head side to side for a bit, and then slowly opened her eyes. I then realized that I could have made a mistake here – what if she didn't actually remember me? Then she would probably be very surprised to hear me calling her some seemingly random name. Or to see some random orange twin-tailed fox staring at her in complete disbelief…  
Thankfully, my suspicions weren't true – as she made out who was in front of her, she suddenly jolted forward, embracing me and shouting: "Oh, Tails! I'm so glad to be back with you again!"  
I couldn't believe what I heard just now. She clearly remembered everything. I myself couldn't resist hugging her, and as much as I wanted to confess her all my pain, I was feeling a bit too tired, so I just quietly whispered: "Welcome back, Cosmo. I really missed you." – I didn't question her on how she was able to return, or anything like that – it didn't really matter to me at the moment.  
"I…I was probably gone for quite a long time, wasn't I?" – Cosmo asked, letting go of me. With slight sadness in my voice, I reply: "It's been four years since your disappearance."  
And there she was, sitting on the bed completely silent for a few moments, with a look of utter disbelief on her beautiful face. I guess that's understandable - she had no way of contact with the mortal world, and even if she did, she likely lost track of time.  
"Are…Are you okay?" – I ask, sounding quite concerned.  
"It's nothing, really. You probably found someone else while I was gone, though..." - Cosmo said, looking down in dismay. I embrace her once more, and reassure her, replying in a determined voice: "No. No, I did not find anyone else while you were away. And I didn't want to, anyway - you are irreplacable, Cosmo, as you are the only person I truly loved. And will still love. "  
At first, she looks at me, frowning confusedly, but soon the frown fades from her expression, as she smiles and replies: "I love you too, Tails. Sorry I didn't get to confess it on more...Peaceful terms. " - And as she says that, she leans in to kiss me on the lips. That was it. That was our real first kiss. Sure, back then, after the tragedy, there was...A certain vision I had. I saw what I assumed to be Cosmo's spirit appear before me and seemingly attempt to kiss me on the lips. But of course, her being a spirit, she just passed through me and faded. And now, I felt it all for real. There was no doubting it. But all good things have to end, and I soon let go of her, needing to catch my breath. "I'm glad that you had returned." - I quietly reply moments later, looking into her beautiful sky blue eyes.  
"And I'm glad to be with you again."  
And with that said, we quietly look each other in the eyes for a few moments before she looks around and asks: "So, where exactly are we? And is it just me, or it's a bit too dark here?"  
"We're over at my house, in my bedroom. And it is late evening on this planet already, so of course it is dark here."  
"Oh…Right, that was quite silly of me. So, are you going to tell the others about my return now?" – The plantgirl asked.  
"Not yet. I guess it's pretty obvious that they're all likely back at their homes, and are probably sleeping. For now, how about I show you the rest of the house?" – I replied as I helped her stand up and we went downstairs, into the living room. She looked around for a bit, getting acquainted with her surroundings.  
"I…Kind of expected your house to be a bit more technologically advanced. Not that I'm disappointed or anything, but…" – Oh, the same defensive tone she always uses when she feels like she said something wrong… I chuckle and reply: "Well, I'm sure the security system here should probably match up to your expectations. Then again, there isn't anyone who would want to break into my house anyway."  
And so, for the time being, I was just quietly showing her around the house, telling which room is for what, lastly showing her to the guest bedroom, as it was where she would probably be sleeping from now on – I doubt anyone else would offer her a place to stay at.  
"If the bed doesn't seem comfortable enough, then I'm sorry about that. It's just that I rarely have guests, so I didn't bother putting a better bed here…" – Just as I kept speaking, Cosmo quietly sat down on her new bed, even feeling it up with her hands.  
"Seems soft enough. At least softer than the bed I had in my room on the Blue Typhoon." – As she said that, she yawned, covering her mouth with her right hand. – "I'm already feeling quite tired, to be honest. I'd like to talk to you some more, but even though I was kind of, you know, 'asleep' for four years, I still feel sleepy."  
"Well…Even though I have quite a lot of things that I should have said way earlier, I do agree that it's already getting late. We might as well go to sleep now." – As I said that, Cosmo took off her green shoes and lied down on the bed in the guest room. As the weather was still quite warm, she didn't cover up with the blanket, just lying down on the bed and closing her eyes. Still facing me, as I stood at the side of the bed, she quietly murmured: "Good night, Tails. I'm glad to be in the mortal world again. And I'm especially glad to be together with you as well. "  
"I'm also glad you're back with me. Sweet dreams." – With that said, I kiss her on the cheek and go to exit the room. As I return back to my bedroom, I take my gloves and shoes off, jumping down into my bed.  
"Never had I thought that today would be the day when I met her again and had a chance to confess everything to her all over again. Am I dreaming?" – I pulled a small strand of my fur out from my hand and yelped from the slight pain. – "No, I certainly felt everything for real. Damn it, Miles, since when did you develop paranoia? Just lie down, accept things the way they are, and go to sleep."  
Soon enough, my mind was almost completely fogged out from how sleepy I felt. The pin-drop silence of the room and the strangely sweet scent of the night air – I had slightly opened the window to make sure the air here doesn't get completely stale overnight. – didn't help on the matter either, and I soon fell asleep.

* * *

 _I wonder if anyone's going to notice the fixed-up prologue?_


	2. Chapter 1 - Good News Travel Fast

Terribly _sorry if any characters seem a bit OOC in certain moments. Also, if there are any plotholes in the explanation of Cosmo's revival, I'm sorry about that, too.  
_

* * *

As soon as Tails woke up, he could feel his suspicions about last evening's events actually not being real rising all over again.

"What if it really was all a dream? I'll go into the room to check on her – and suddenly, she just won't be there. She will be just gone without a trace, the bed will have no signs of her actually being there…" – As the young fox said that, he slowly stood up from his bed, put his shoes and gloves back on, and headed for the guest room, where Cosmo was presumably sleeping. As Tails approached the door, he slowly reached out to turn the doorknob, expecting the worst to happen. Barely opening the door and peeking in, he sighed with relief when he saw that Cosmo was still there, sleeping peacefully. Tails slowly and quietly approached the young seedrian, and whispered: "Rise and shine, Cosmo. It's morning already."

At first, the seedrian turned a bit in her sleep, getting on her back, and then sat upright, stretching her arms and opening her eyes. After yawning, she replied: "Good morning, Tails."

"So it was real…" – Tails quietly whispered, relieved that the last evening's events were not actually a delusion or anything like that. While Cosmo didn't hear what Tails said exactly, she noticed the slightly confused tone in which Tails had spoke.

"Tails, are you okay?" – The plantgirl asked, sounding noticeably worried. Tails snapped out of his brief stupor and replied: "Yes, I'm fine. Anyway…Maybe we'll get down into the kitchen and I'll make you some breakfast? I mean, you probably feel really hungry at the moment, though I didn't really notice if you needed any food back when we were travelling through space on board of the Blue Typhoon…"

"Usually, I get by with a good dose of sunlight…But directly-absorbed energy just doesn't seem to last long for some reason. So I suppose that some food would be great." – With that said, Cosmo stood up from her bed quietly, putting her green shoes back on and following Tails downstairs and into the kitchen. Tails decided that pancakes would probably be great for breakfast, so that's what he was cooking, while Cosmo quietly sat down beside the table, waiting. As soon as she had the first pancake served to her, she poked it a few times with her fork before actually taking a small slice and eating it. After she took her time to savor the taste, she quietly continued enjoying her meal, while Tails quietly sat down next to her and asked: "I guess you actually really liked them?"

Cosmo didn't really reply, just smiling and nodding. After she had finished her portion, she remarked: "They really are quite tasty, and they seem to be quite simple to cook."

"Glad you enjoyed them." – Tails replied, finishing his portion as well. After cleaning up the dishes, the two quietly went out into the living room. Once there, Tails remembered something and said: "Guess it's about time I let the others know about your return." – After that, the young fox took his cellphone that was previously lying on the couch, and dialed a certain number, calling Sonic. Soon enough, Tails heard Sonic replying on the other end: "Hey bro, long time no talk! How are you doing?"

"Everything's fine, but that's not really important right now. I need you to tell the others to come over to my place. I can't tell exactly what happened, but I need you all to be here as soon as possible. You got that?"

"Very well then, buddy. I'll be here as soon as possible, considering the others are kind of going to slow me down, you know." – With that said, Sonic hung up the phone and Tails left it back on the couch. Seeming a bit confused about why Tails didn't exactly tell Sonic about what happened, Cosmo asked: "Why didn't you tell him that I'm alive?"

"Cosmo, think about it: A person who is clearly suffering from depression because of a death of their loved one suddenly calls you, and tells you that this person is actually still alive. What is the first thought you would have if that happened?"

"I…Would probably think they are insane?"

"Exactly, and that's why I didn't tell him all the details." – With that said, the two were now quietly waiting until Sonic and the others arrive. About half an hour later, the doorbell rang, and Tails said: "Now, I want you to go out and greet them personally. I want to see how they would react."  
Cosmo quietly nodded and went to answer the door.

Now imagine the whole situation from Sonic's point of view – your little brother calls you and tells there's something that happened at his place. You go call your friends, as he asked you to tell them to come over as well. And when you arrive, you are suddenly greeted by a person who you thought had died long ago. It was no surprise that Sonic, as well as the others – Amy, Cream, Knuckles and Shade. – were very shocked when they saw Cosmo quietly greeting them.

"I'm glad to see you again, friends." – Cosmo replied innocently, standing in the doorway.  
Sonic was completely dumbfounded, with a look of utter shock on his face. The look on Amy's face wasn't far back either, though she wasn't as completely shocked as Sonic was. Knuckles was also completely dumbfounded – if his brain was a computer, it would have probably shut off with a BSOD from the slight cognitive dissonance he had at the moment – Cream was probably the only one of the few people who wasn't shocked, but still looking a bit uneasy, and Shade was confused, but not shocked – in fact, what left her slightly confused was the way her friends reacted to that person who she had never actually saw in her whole life. So, as the others stood there, Tails had approached the doorway and said: "Well, why are you all standing there? Come on in, we'll discuss everything."  
Sure enough, the others went into the house, and then came forward a barrage of questions from Sonic and everyone else.

"How did she end up here?"

"I thought she was dead?"

"How that happened?"

"Is this even possible?"

The only ones not asking any questions were Shade and Cream – in fact, the latter was telling the whole story to the former: "Long story short, at first it seemed as if she had sacrificed her life – there were basically no traces of her left, except a tiny little seedling that had been created as a result of Chaos Regeneration used by Sonic and Shadow. At first, it seemed like there was no way for her to come back – we all clearly saw her get almost completely disintegrated. And yet somehow, I felt like she might have actually been still alive – it's hard to describe, but whenever I was around the plant that was left of her, I kind of felt…A strange presence. As if her very spirit was still around. And it seems that I was right after all."

"Well, after all I saw during my time here, I'm not surprised by anything and can take this story for granted." – Shade remarked. Soon enough, the tidal wave of questions had soon calmed down – Cosmo finally shut everyone up: "Everyone, please, calm down! I'll explain everything on my own."

* * *

( _Flashback – Four years ago, Gaia's Realm_ )

"Whoa…" – Cosmo looked around the place she had ended up in after she said one last goodbye to Tails – Gaia's Realm was certainly a beautiful place – it was pretty much an endless field of flowers, and it seemed as if it was always daytime in that place. Of course, Cosmo was not alone in the realm – seedrians of younger and older generations alike were seeing in the realm. Some of them were happy, talking with their relatives and friends or, in case of the kids, running around. Some of them were sad, standing there silently and likely thinking about what they had done in life. Cosmo looked around to see if her family was there, and sure enough, here they were, quietly standing and waiting for Cosmo to come by.

"I'm glad to see you again, Cosmo." – Her mother, Hertia, said as Cosmo approached her. As for Cosmo's older sisters, they had also all greeted her again. In fact, just about everyone, except Cosmo and Lucas, seemed to be happy with the afterlife. In case of the latter, it was understandable – The atrocities that Lucas had commited would have likely made him end up not in Gaia's Realm, but instead in the Scorched Barrens – basically, the seedrian analogue of hell, and to put it simply, the Scorched Barrens were basically a scorched wasteland, as if there was an endless burnt down forest that never regrew. Right now, he was talking to someone who turned out to be one of the guardians of Gaia's Realm – a gold-haired female seedrian who stood almost as tall as Lucas and wore a silver-golden dress.

"So in the end…"- Lucas was still feeling horribly uneasy, talking to one of the guardians of Gaia. – "I managed to earn redemption, but the others did not?"

"Correct. In the end, at least you realized the errors of your ways. But the others were beyond redemption…Red Pine was nothing more than a bloodthirsty maniac, Pale Bay Leaf committed such atrocities in life that they're not even worth mentioning, Yellow Zelkova had left one dead planet after another in his wake, and Black Narcissus was nothing more than a sadistic monster. As for the lesser Metarex, they were nothing more than soulless, lifeless constructs."

"And yet it took me the death of my only still alive daughter to realize my mistakes."

"It's all in the past now. Now, I'm sure you have someone else who requires to be spoken to." – The guardian pointed towards Cosmo, who had just finished talking with the others. Lucas slowly approached the young seedrian, knelt down slightly, and said: "I'm sorry, my dear. I'm sorry for causing you so much pain in life, I'm sorry that I had ordered that Metarex to assassinate all of you, and I'm especially sorry for that tracking device."

"Don't worry, father. Just like the guardian said, it's all left in the past. And there's no changing it…" – As Cosmo said the last sentence, her voice sounded surprisingly sad.

"Is there something troubling you, Cosmo?" – Hertia asked, approaching her younger daughter. Cosmo didn't reply, just quietly walking away. Lucas replied: "I guess she has all the valid reasons to be sad. At least you and I were gone when we had accomplished more than enough in our lives. But her and the others? They all were cut down in their prime…And it was all my fault."

"I'm afraid there's no bringing the others back, Lucas. But your youngest daughter may yet have another chance at life…" – The same guardian from before said, approaching the family. Of course, they were all surprised to hear this.

"How?" – They asked almost in unison. The guardian floated past Lucas and Hertia, and stood right before Cosmo. The young seedrian looked up, and the gold-haired seedrian spoke out to her: "Cosmo, from what I had seen, someone had attempted to use Chaos Regeneration to revive you. It may have seemed unsuccessful at first, but in truth, it worked perfectly – it's just going to take you some time to return back to your normal state. Gaia can speed up the process, but even her power has its limits – you will only be able to return four years later from now. Your body will change accordingly, as if you never missed out on these four years and had aged throughout them. And in case you're worried that your powers might go out of control some time when you return to the mortal world and reach adulthood later on - don't be afraid, as Gaia will restore your amulet when you return. Consider this a small parting gift. The reason why you still have a chance of coming back...It's not just the physical remnant linking you back to the mortal world – it's the hope and love of a certain mobian you probably know all too well…"

"Tails…" – Cosmo immediately recognized what mobian the guardian had talked about.

"Exactly."

"But…When I return…There…I am the only remaining seedrian. Aren't we doomed to die out anyway? It's all-" – The guardian had quietly silenced Cosmo, bringing her index finger to her lips, smiling.

"Don't worry about that, Cosmo. You may not have known this…But you were the destined child, The Great Hope, all along. The one, who would bring the seedrian race back. Not many remember this, but in some extreme circumstances, certain seedrians are actually capable of crossbreeding with most other sapient beings – no matter if their nature is that of plants, animals or even incorporeal beings. And of course, you were one such seedrian. Your firstborn will be a pure-blooded seedrian, but the other children you may have in the future might just end up as hybrids, and this will continue with each generation – the firstborn shall never be impure, and thus the seedrian race shall not die out. I take it none of you-"– The guardian turned to face Lucas and Hertia, who were the only ones nearby at the moment – Galaxina and the others had already ran off. –"-have any objections against this?"

As Lucas heard the guardian's words, he took some time to realize it. After a few moments, he replied: "As much as I despise the thought of the pure royal blood being tainted like this… I see there is no other choice."

"And you, Hertia? Do you agree on those conditions?" – The guardian was now facing Hertia, obviously.

"I care about the future of the seedrians as much as Gaia does. I have no objections."

"Very well then. Cosmo, for the remaining four years, you shall be in a state of hibernation. When you wake up, you will be back to the mortal world, with all your memories and personality completely intact. Now, Cosmo, close your eyes – it will be like a relaxing day nap…"

( _End of flashback_ )

* * *

"And next thing I knew, I woke up at Tails' bedroom, with him looking at me."

Everyone else was busy trying to understand the whole story. Knuckles was probably the most confused out of everyone, saying: "Well, that's just…I mean…I'm glad I don't have an overly scientific approach to things, otherwise I would be even more confused at hearing about so much things going against the laws of life and physics."

"Try not to hurt yourself in your confusion." – Shade said teasingly, to which Knuckles grumbled something unintelligible. After that, the terracotta echidna turned to face Cosmo and replied: "Never had I thought that I'd live to see someone who practically descended from their respective heaven. In any case, I'm sure we'll get along just fine!" – Shade lightly nudged Cosmo in the shoulder as she said that.

"Well…I had so much weird things happen in my life that I might as well take that story for granted." – Sonic remarked, shrugging.

"I see that I'm not the only one who cheated death at least once." – A familiar voice rang through the room.

Everyone else turned to face where the voice came from, and sure enough, it turned out that Shadow had teleported into the house, and now stood there quietly. Sure enough, Tails immediately ran over to Cosmo and stood right before her, shielding her.

"What do you need here? You're not exactly welcome here, you know. And Cosmo doesn't quite want to see you." – As if emphasizing Tails' point, Cosmo cowered behind him.

"Relax, you two. No one's going to get hurt, as long as you don't make the mistake of trying to attack me." – Shadow replied in a calm voice, not moving an inch from where he stood.

"I take it you and that girl had some problems in the past?" – Shade asked, approaching Shadow. The black and red hedgehog replied in the same cool and collected voice: "To spare you all the details – she used to be an unwilling spy for an entire army of planet-destroying aliens. I…May have attempted to assassinate her in the past, and now Tails here still doesn't forgive me for that."

"Of course I don't forgive you – trying to kill someone's loved one isn't exactly something you can easily forgive, and you know it all too well." – As Tails said that, Shadow quietly walked over to him and replied: "Look, kid, no one's going to get hurt if you don't do any stupid mistakes. That plantgirl you're so furiously protecting? She is no longer my target. But I still have suspicions about whether or not you're actually protecting Cosmo, and not some **mechanical knockoff**."

"Shadow, if you're really that paranoid, I'll just quietly scan her to make sure that she is not an android of some sort." – Shade pressed a button on one of her bracelets and it changed shape into a glove of sorts with a purple light on the inner palm. Cosmo immediately backed off, to which Shade replied: "Don't worry, it's nothing dangerous, just a simple Nocturnus scanner." – After that, Shade pointed her hand towards Cosmo, and a purple light had briefly enveloped her. After a few seconds, some sort of screen lit up on Shade's scanner, but since it was all in a language that only the echidna herself could understand, Shadow didn't try to decipher it.

"Well…Even though her biological signs differ greatly from those of Mobians… I don't see any traces of mechanical modifications in her. No tracking devices, no mechanical replacement limbs, nothing. Seems like she's the real deal, Shadow." – Shade turned the scanner mode off as she said that, and the high-tech scanner she had was now back to being what looked like a simple bracelet.

"The possibilities of anyone being able to clone her are out of question, too. Unless…" – Shadow turned to face Tails – "Tell me, what happened to the plant that was left from Cosmo when you had found her again?"

"Are you saying someone could have took the plant and created some sort of evil clone of Cosmo?"

"Tails, don't dodge the question. What happened to the plant?" – Shadow replied, looking at Cosmo suspiciously. The young seedrian backed off, fearing that Shadow might hurt her if he were to get a reason to do so.

"Well…I don't recall finding any broken pieces of the flowerpot that her plant used to grow in. I just saw her lying near the house wall, under the second floor window. And no traces of the ground that the plant grew in, or the flowerpot itself…" – Tails suddenly realized what this meant, and slowly turned to face Cosmo. The plantgirl was still looking scared – it was unnerving to see everyone suddenly distrust her again, just like back when she crash-landed on Mobius.

"You know, in those kinds of situations, the evil knockoff is usually asked a question that only the real deal knows the answer to." – Amy picked a rather inopportune time to interrupt.

"As much as I want to tell you to shut up..." - Shadow had passed a death glare towards Amy. - "I think you have a point here."

"Well…" – Tails hesitantly turned to face Cosmo back. – "If you really are the real Cosmo…What happened back then between us on Planet Marmolin? I'm sure Amy didn't tell that story to anyone just yet."

Cosmo nervously backed off, but since she had no real direction to back off to – she was surrounded everywhere, she just covered her face and replied: "We were quietly discussing something when you accidentally tripped and we…Triggered a trap, which threw us both into some sort of magical spring… Then we were sitting there for a few moments, enjoying the view."

"Only Amy and I actually remember this little incident." – Tails pondered for a bit, looking at Cosmo. Everyone else was busy discussing this little incident – likely because they heard about it for the first time. – "Amy is a bit of a motor mouth, but I doubt she would go around telling this story to literally everyone."

"Motor mouth?!" – Amy was just about to lash out at Tails with her hammer in her hands, but was barely stopped by Sonic in time.

"Okay, okay, everyone calm down. If it really is a memory that only the select few, including Cosmo, remember, then I suppose we can trust this one." – Shadow said, turning to face Cosmo. The young seedrian backed off, not knowing what to expect of Shadow. Luckily for her, the black hedgehog just quietly said: "So it seems that Chaos Regeneration did work after all."

"I am having a hard time understanding something, however: When Chaos Regeneration was used on me-" – Of course, Sonic was referring to the time back in Soleanna, when it seemed like Mephiles had killed him, but Chaos Regeneration was used to bring him back to life. – "-it pretty much worked instantaneously – I immediately woke up and was ready to fight against Solaris. But in Cosmo's case…"

"Sonic, your body wasn't disintegrated into molecules – of course you were revived almost instantaneously. In Cosmo's case, all we really had to work with is mere remnants of her body. And besides, maybe the fact that this was an uncooperated last-ditch effort had played a part in the whole 'took too long to revive' business. " – Shadow interrupted Sonic, saying this in a somewhat snarky voice.

"Oh…Guess that makes sense." – Sonic shrugged as he said that.

"In any case, I'll probably take my leave now. I've got everything I needed to know, so I'm out of here. See you around." – With that said, Shadow had teleported out of the house. After that, the others – except for Sonic and Tails – were talking to Cosmo once again – at first, Cosmo had told Shade how she got to know Sonic and the others, then Amy and Cream were telling Cosmo what happened on Mobius during her absence, and Knuckles was just sitting there impatiently, wondering if Rouge or someone else has already scurried off with the Master Emerald or if she/they is/are probably trying to find the right way to take the damn thing.

As for Sonic and Tails, they were just having some brotherly talk: "Glad to see you're back to normal, Tails."

"And I'm glad that Cosmo is back with me again." – Tails looked back at Cosmo– right now, it seemed that she was discussing some funny story with Cream and Amy, as she was smiling and giggling every now and then.

"Well, as much as I'd like to stick around, I better get going. See ya later, Tails!" – With that said, Sonic had rushed out of the house. Amy had stopped telling her story and ran after Sonic, shouting: "Sonic, wait up!"

"Seems like everyone else is getting outta here now. Eh, might as well get going myself. Mom's likely going to be worried out of her mind if I don't come back home quick enough." – As Cream said that, she went to quietly exit the house.

"Okay, now that everyone has left, can we go now, Shade? We've still got an Emerald to protect, y'know. " – Knuckles said in a rather impatient voice.

"Jeez, Knux, calm down! I'm fairly certain Rouge wouldn't be able to carry the Emerald off of the island without any accidents. I mean, she is an agile flyer, sure, but I doubt she would be just as agile when carrying an Emerald that weighs twice as much as her!" – With that said, as Shade stood up from the couch and approached Knuckles, she pressed a few buttons on her bracelet, initiating a teleport algorithm of sorts. – "See ya later, Cos. Maybe we'll get to hang out sometime." – And as Shade said that, she and Knuckles had teleported away. Now Tails and Cosmo were left alone once again.

"So…Guess we're left here on our own." – Cosmo said as Tails sat down next to her.

"You know, I am feeling kinda hungry at the moment." – Tails looked at the clock, seeing that it was already near lunch time. – "Suppose we might as well get something. Perhaps some meat would be fine with you?"

"Sounds alright to me."

* * *

The dinner went pretty smoothly – Tails still had some chicken left in the fridge, so he thought it would be fitting for dinner. And of course, Cosmo quite appreciated it, pretty much nomming her portion down in a few minutes. From that moment onward, their day went fairly routinely – they would have some off-handed talk about various things – Tails would ask about what Cosmo knew about Greengate, while Cosmo herself asked Tails about what Mobius is like. One particular piece of information from Tails that had her caught up was the common romantic places to go out to.

"Wow…Twinkle Park certainly sounds like a beautiful place." – Cosmo said as Tails finished his story.

"Sure it is. And we might even go out there next time we're in the city." – The young fox replied, still hugging Cosmo. – "Now that I'm not so much of an ineffectual loner, I think that I – no, we – have a valid reason to go there."

And there wasn't much else interesting happening, really. Except for when Tails and Cosmo went to sleep. Even though Cosmo had fell asleep in her room rather quickly, Tails still had some trouble sleeping, so he decided to go out into the house yard to get a breath of fresh air.

"Having trouble sleeping too, Miles?" – A voice rang from behind Tails. The fox immediately turned back and saw Shadow sitting on top of his house's roof.

"Yeah, and your presence will totally help me get over it." – Tails replied sarcastically. – "What do you need here, anyway?"

"Look, I kind of forgot to tell you something about back then, when I had attempted to resurrect Cosmo. In fact, you might still be questioning why I even bothered to revive her – I did attempt to kill her before, after all…" – Shadow said, jumping down from the roof.

"Thanks for the reminder, Shadow. Anything else?" - The fox grumbled.

"So, as I was saying… You see, Miles, I had attempted to use Chaos Regeneration to revive Cosmo…Because I know what it's like – to lose your loved ones too soon." – Shadow sat down on the ground as he said that. He sighed and continued: "And look, I lost count of how many times people around me died for no good reason. But it certainly didn't do any good to my perception of things."

"So, what of it? What does that have to do with me?" – Tails asked in a more normal tone.

"Let's just say that… You still have a whole life ahead of yourself, Miles. I wouldn't wish anyone to have their life ruined completely by the death of their loved one. Now, guess I better get going, or Rouge is going to be mad that I didn't come by her place to spend the night again." – As Shadow said that, he noticed a smirk on Tails' face. – "No, I just have nowhere else to go. Rouge and I have no such business between ourselves. Oh, and don't tell anyone about what I told you."

"Okay, okay, not gonna hurt your pride. See ya." – As Tails said that, Shadow ran off. The fox stayed there for a few more moments before the night air was beginning to make him feel drowsy, and thus he went back into the house. Once in his bed, he lied there for a few moments, thinking about the day that had passed.

"Guess even Shadow isn't as bad as I thought he is. Well, at least I can hope that neither of us are going to attempt to tear each other's head off anytime soon. As for Cosmo…I'm certainly glad she is back to life now. And it's not just some deliberate delusion, either. Hm. Maybe I may have some plans for the future with her… Whatever, Miles, you'll think about all of this tomorrow. For now, just go to sleep. " – And with these thoughts, Tails fell asleep.

* * *

 _Whew…The reformatting is a real pain in the behind. And I still have several chapters to go. While I was at it, I also fixed some things up.  
_


	3. Chapter 2 - Nightmares and Daydreams

_Oh boy, I had too much fun writing the descriptions for those nightmares, so there's some creepy stuff coming up ahead_ :)  
 _As always, I'm terribly sorry if anyone seems a bit OOC in certain moments.  
This chapter was a REAL writing hell, and I'm still not happy with it. Expect this particular chapter to get rewritten over...And over...And over...  
_

* * *

"What is going on? Why am I aboard the Blue Typhoon again?"  
Tails was having another one of those nightmares. Specifically, a nightmare about a particularly painful day. The day of the final battle against Dark Oak. The memory of that particular day always cut Tails like a knife - how Cosmo used her power to weaken Dark Oak, how he had to fire the Sonic Driver to finish off Dark Oak, killing Cosmo off together with him, and how he cried in complete misery as he realized just what he had done. But this time, the memory was completely different. Dark Oak was nowhere to be seen – in fact, there wasn't anyone else in the cosmic void other than Cosmo in her normal form, who was seemingly standing out in the void and begging for mercy: "Please, Tails, don't do this! This isn't the way to end this conflict!"  
If Tails had a choice in the situation way back then, four years ago, he sure wouldn't ever try to hurt Cosmo in any way. However, Tails had no other choice – it was either the life of one person, or the entire universe, with no third option. In this nightmare however, Tails didn't press the button to fire the cannon on his own accord – this time, he pretty much felt his hand reach towards it against his will. As much as he struggled not to do this, his hand just ignored the orders from his brain completely. And as the young fox pressed the button and saw Cosmo get disintegrated into nothingness, he heard voices. Millions upon millions of voices, berating him on his actions...  
"You monster!"  
"How dare you?!"  
"Why did you do this to her?!"  
"That was completely heartless!"  
"I'm sorry…I had no other choice! There was no other way! I didn't want to do this, I swear! " – Tails shouted, but his words were pretty much going into nowhere. Moments after that, Tails realized he was no longer aboard the Blue Typhoon, instead standing in the middle of complete darkness. At first, it was eerily quiet, and Tails felt completely alone…Until suddenly, the voices had returned, except shouting even more often, still accusing Tails of what he did back then...  
"Murderer!"  
"You killed her!"  
"Traitor!"  
"How could you do that to her?!"  
"You heartless monster!"  
"I hate you!"  
"Soulless freak!"  
In what felt like an eternity, the voices had devolved into nothing more than a screaming mess, which became too overwhelming for Tails. And so, the fox jolted awake, screaming as he felt himself getting overwhelmed by fear and guilt.

* * *

It was about 1 AM at the moment. The room where Tails slept in was almost pitch-black, so he reached to switch the desk lamp on and stood up from the bed to run off into the bathroom and splash some cold water on his face. This certainly wasn't the first time that he had these nightmares since the day of Cosmo's return - in fact, he already had nightmares for quite a few nights straight, and days before Cosmo's return, his sleep was usually dreamless - not exactly pleasant, but at least he wasn't having so much trouble sleeping. But now, after Cosmo's return, the nightmares he had in the past had returned, almost depriving the young fox of his sleep.  
As Tails exited his bedroom, he practically bumped into Cosmo. After the plantgirl got back up, she asked:"You're having trouble sleeping too?" Tails immediately turned to face away from her and said: "Yeah, sort of. Had another bad dream, so I need to splash some cold water on my face." – With that said, Tails entered the bathroom while Cosmo stayed outside. Moments after, Tails came back, wiping his face with a towel.  
"Tails, is something bothering you? I don't know if you had these nightmares before my return, but..."  
"No, no, I'm fine. I just...Have some trouble sleeping, that's all. Go back to your bed now, I don't really want you to stay up all night because of me." - With that said, Tails hastily ran off back to his bedroom. Cosmo stood before the bedroom door for a few moments, and just about reached to knock on it, but soon pulled her hand back and said to herself: "He is clearly having some trouble sleeping. I better ask him what's the matter in the morning." - As Cosmo said that, she had walked back to her bedroom, and then fell down onto her bed. The young seedrian had lied there for a few moments before she herself fell asleep.

* * *

As for Tails, he had some trouble going back to sleep. The previously calming silence of his bedroom now felt completely eerie, and Tails didn't even want to fall asleep, trying his best to stay awake after the nightmare. But soon enough, the young fox had fallen asleep. This time however, the night was almost entirely dreamless.  
At about early morning, Tails had woke up quietly. He looked around for a while, not seeing anything unusual. He had exited his bedroom quietly, heading for the bathroom to brush his teeth. Just as he finished and washed his face, his reflection suddenly said in an eerie voice: "Murderer."  
After that, Tails had woke up for real. The young fox slowly stood up from his bed and ran into the bathroom, and this time everything was going normally, without anything out of the ordinary happening - his reflection didn't talk to him, there wasn't anything out in the window, everything was alright. After Tails had finished his morning routine, he ran downstairs, thinking about the nightmares he had overnight.  
"Of course, it doesn't take a genius to figure that one out…It's my subconscious constantly tormenting me and basically saying that I still am guilty for hurting her like this…But she is back with me again, she doesn't seem to be angry at me for what I done back then…And yet, I still feel guilty about this whole incident… Damn it, Miles, you need to get your mind off of it somehow. Just go to your workshop and get back to working on that plane upgrade. There is always room for improvement." – As Tails thought that, he didn't even notice how his legs pretty much carried him to the workshop. – "Well, since I am here already, it's time to get to work." – The fox said, sitting down beside the drafting table and looking over the blueprints of The Tornado all over again.  
Meanwhile, Cosmo had already woken up, and when she exited into the corridor, she noticed that the door to Tails' room was left wide open, and it seemed that Tails himself was gone as well.  
"Probably at his workshop. Okay, Cosmo, just ask him what's the matter. It shouldn't be that hard." – With these thoughts, Cosmo went to exit Tails' house and check on him in his workshop. Sure enough, she noticed that Tails was there, sitting beside the drafting table, hastily drafting a blueprint of some sort.  
"Good morning, Tails." – Cosmo said, approaching Tails.  
"Oh..." - Tails had turned to face away from the drafting table as he heard Cosmo greet him. - "Good morning, Cosmo. Did I miss breakfast?"  
"No, it's not about that. You seemed a little worried last night. What's the matter?" - The young plantgirl asked, approaching Tails.  
"Eh, it was just some nightmares. Nothing worth your attention." - The answer did seem a bit off-handed, as Tails had immediately went back to working on his blueprints after he said that.  
"Very well then. I'll come in when breakfast is ready. You want pancakes as usual?" - This wasn't the first time Cosmo had to cook something for Tails, since he was often busy in his workshop and didn't have time to cook anything himself. Even though Cosmo didn't yet know how to cook some of the more complex meals, the more simple ones proved to be just enough, if a little repetitive.  
"Sure thing." - As Tails said that, Cosmo had quietly ran off back to their house. Even when Cosmo was cooking, though, her thoughts were still occupied with Tails' current state. "Considering what he went through, it's understandable that he is suffering from nightmares. And it seems like he didn't want to talk about it so much. And yet, I feel that I must repay him for his emotional support back then." - As Cosmo kept saying her thoughts out loud, she didn't even notice how she almost overcooked one of the pancakes, and immediately hurried to remove it from the frying pan, later focusing on the cooking again, ending her trail of thought on the following: "If he wakes up from a nightmare in the middle of the night again, I'll just ask him what's wrong. I'm sure he trusts me enough to tell me what's the matter."  
The rest of the day had gone by quite routinely - Cosmo was mostly either doing housework, cooking or reading some books, with a few romantic novels being the ones that caught her attention the most. As for Tails, he spend most of his time at the workshop, only leaving it to take care of some of his natural needs. The two didn't really talk much throughout the day, too - Cosmo was too afraid to seem clingy by once again asking Tails what' wrong with him, while Tails had trouble mustering up the courage to go on ahead to Cosmo and confess his problems. They didn't really say much to each other when they were going to sleep, either - all they really said to each other was an off-handed "Sweet dreams" as they went to their respective bedrooms.  
"I'll just ask him what's the matter. I'm too worried about his mental well-being - he certainly didn't look like he had much restful sleep when I met him again as well. Yes, that's what I'll do." - With that in mind, Cosmo had soon fallen asleep. As for Tails, at first he struggled to fall asleep, still thinking that the nightmares might return all over again.  
"Then again, this guilt will keep eating away at me if I don't tell her what's wrong. That's it, Tails. If the nightmares continue, you go on ahead, and tell her everything. That would be best for you." - And on that trail of thought, Tails had soon fallen asleep.

* * *

"Tails! Wait up!"  
Cosmo had woken up in the middle of nowhere - it seemed like she was out in a grassy field of sorts, with no one around. Suddenly, she saw Tails not too far away, running off. Cosmo had stood up and ran after him, and soon noticed that he stopped in front of a cliff. A sense of dread had overcome her as she slowly approached the young fox. As soon as she was close enough to reach out for Tails with her hand, the fox had turned to face her, making her flinch back in fear - it had no face! After that shocking revelation, the strange apparition had jumped down from the cliff and into the endless abyss below, Cosmo shouting "Wait!"  
But it was too late - the fox made no effort to get back up, letting the endless darkness consume him...

* * *

"Oh no…Not again…" – Tails mumbled as he found himself in the middle of nowhere again. This time, in his nightmare, he ended up in the middle of a rather strange grassy field – the grass was a fleshy color, the sky was completely black with blood-red clouds, and the air reeked of death.  
"Now this is getting even creepier than before…"  
"You can't escape your guilt, Miles." – A voice rang from behind Tails. The young fox slowly turned around and saw an apparition that looked a lot like Cosmo, except heavily mutilated – one of the buds was torn off with dark green blood oozing from the hole left in its place, the chest of the creature had a huge hole burned right through it, and instead of the beautiful blue eyes that the real Cosmo had, the apparition had empty eyesockets that oozed dark green blood. Tails immediately froze in place as he saw this monstrosity. – "What's the matter? Scared stiff?" – The monster said, taunting Tails.  
"Please, just leave me alone…" – The fox replied, backing off.  
"I told you already – there is no escaping your guilt. You will be stuck with your painful past forever, Miles."  
"This isn't real…This is just a dream. A really bad dream, but still a dream nonetheless…" – Tails mumbled, still backing off. Suddenly, he realized that he has nothing to step back on – the ground below him had disappeared, and now was nothing more but an endless abyss. A twisted smile crossed the Cosmo apparition's face, as she grabbed Tails by his neck, lifted him above the chasm, and said in an eerie whispering tone: "Murderers must always get their punishment." – And with these words, the apparition let go of Tails, making him fall down the endless abyss. As much as Tails wanted to scream, he found out that he couldn't utter anything but a wheezing sound as he fell into the endless abyss…

* * *

"Oof!" – Tails had fell out of his bed. He slowly stood up, put the pillow back on, and went to exit the bedroom, but not before looking out of the window – the sun was already dawning over Mobius again, and another morning came onward. After looking out, Tails headed out of his bedroom and into the corridor. – "I must tell her about the nightmares that torment me. I see that they are directly linked to her, so Cosmo is the only one who can at least try to help me get some restful sleep for once." – With that said, Tails had slowly walked over to Cosmo's bedroom, and was just about to knock on the door, but stopped at last second. – "No, I better not wake her like this. She was probably busy keeping the house clean while I was away and needs her well-deserved rest after yesterday."  
What Tails did instead was go downstairs, but instead of heading for his workshop, he decided to just wait until Cosmo comes down as well. Sure enough, the young plantgirl had soon ran downstairs and into the living room, yawning. As soon as she had noticed that Tails was waiting in the living room, she had ran over to him and said: "Tails, I got to ask you something."  
"No, it is I who should tell you about something..."  
As much as Cosmo wanted to speak up first, she had felt that Tails might just want to confess what's wrong right now, so instead of insisting that she speaks up first, the young plantgirl replied: "Okay, go on."  
"It's about those nightmares I kept having every night." – Tails looked down as he said that.  
"I knew it. So, what is bothering you?" - Cosmo had asked in a rather concerned voice.  
"They all seem to be linked to…A certain incident from back then, four years ago. You know what incident I am referring to."  
And afterwards, Tails told her everything about the nightmares that he had lately. As he kept talking, Cosmo was getting more and more terrified – it wasn't the descriptions of Tails' nightmares that scared her, but how vivid these descriptions were, which implied that these nightmares must have really affected Tails.  
"I just cannot let this guilt go. I hate myself for what I had to do to you. And I understand if you had any hard feelings towards me back then." – Tails covered his face with his hands after he said that. Cosmo went silent for a few moments, thinking about what Tails just told her. Soon enough, she had grabbed on to Tails' hands, moved them away from his face, and hugged him. The young fox was confused for a few moments, asking: "Cosmo, what are you…"  
"Don't worry, Tails. I wasn't angry at you back then, and I'm not angry at you now. You made the right choice – if you didn't do this, we wouldn't live to see each other again, right?"  
"I…I guess you have a point." – Tails hugged Cosmo back as he said that. – "There is no point dwelling on the past – we are together once more, and there won't be anyone who will separate us again."  
"You're a lot more like the cheerful fox I remember you being." - The young plantgirl replied, setting back and smiling as she looked into Tails' eyes. - "So, I suppose that inner conflict is resolved and you won't be having nightmares anymore?"  
"I suppose it is. Now that we had gotten this out of the way..." - Tails heard his stomach rumbling and didn't quite finish his sentence, asking after a few moments: "You know, I think we can talk about the rest later. I'm hungry for some pancakes right now."  
"In a few moments!"  
As Cosmo ran off to the kitchen, Tails had breathed a sigh of relief. There was no doubting it - his past shall be long bygone now, left as nothing more than distant memories.


	4. Chapter 3 - Memories and Reminiscences

_So, this is another of the chapters that I re-drafted over and over with the premise being much of the same, but the events being a little shifted around repeatedly. And even now, after I submitted this one, I feel like it doesn't quite meet my standarts, so chances are that it will get a rewrite sometime in the future.  
_

As Tails woke up, finally feeling like he had some restful sleep, he looked around and saw that Cosmo was, indeed, still sleeping right next to him. The plantgirl was holding on to one of the young fox's namesakes, but was already awake, smiling at him and saying: "Good morning, Tails. Did you sleep well?"  
"Much better than in the past few days, that is for certain." – Tails replied, sitting upright. As he looked towards the bedroom window, he noticed that it was quite rainy outside already. – "Guess we're not going anywhere today. Such a shame – I actually wanted to take you for a walk through Mystic Forest. That's quite the nice place for walks, to say the least."  
"And I thought it was still summer. Seems like weather has other plans for the season." – Cosmo replied, sitting upright as well while letting go of Tails' namesakes.  
"Weather on Mobius is weird like that. Sometimes the weather doesn't even match the season." – The young fox remarked, still looking out the window.  
"You know, I kind of find it strange how the climate on various areas of certain planets can actually change depending on the time of their respective star cycle. When I had lived on that spaceship together with the others, I had always assumed that all planets stay the same throughout their entire star cycle." – As Cosmo noticed that Tails was quietly giggling, her tone shifted to a more 'defensive' one: "I know, that sounds silly, but I was still a little kid back then, what would you expect of me?"  
"It's alright. I understand that. If I had lived my entire life on a spaceship where the climate was always kept the same at all times, without any contact with planets like Mobius, I would probably have a hard time understanding the concept of seasons myself." – Tails replied, barely holding his laughing back.  
"Speaking of spending one's time on a spaceship…" – Cosmo had blushed at what she was about to say. – "Sleeping with you on a proper bed feels much better than spending the night on a metal bunk. Your fluffy tails are better than any blanket. "  
"Hah. Never had anyone compliment me on **that**." – The young fox replied, blushing as well. The two were silently looking at each other for a few more moments before Cosmo said: "You know, I think we should probably get going and have some breakfast."  
"Okay, let's get going." – As Tails stood up from his bed, the young seedrian has asked: "Pancakes as usual?"  
"I don't see why not."  
Later on, while Cosmo was busy making breakfast, Tails was just quietly waiting at the kitchen – he didn't really feel up going to his workshop just yet – it's not that he felt too lazy to finish the work, it's just that the young fox wanted to spend a bit more time with Cosmo. Of course, the young seedrian didn't complain – she also welcomed Tails' presence. The breakfast time itself went fairly quietly – the two didn't really talk much. However, while Cosmo was washing dishes, Tails couldn't help but stay in the kitchen for a while, talking to her throughout.  
"So, why didn't you go running off to your workshop again?" – Cosmo had asked as she put another plate away.  
"I just wanted to spend a bit more time with you." – Tails replied, blushing slightly.  
"Aww…That's so sweet of you." – The young seedrian said, blushing as well.  
"Speaking of spending time with you, how about we go out into the Mystic Forest after the rain outside ends? It's quite a nice place for relaxed walks in the afternoon." – Tails had asked, standing up from the table and approaching the young plantgirl.  
"If the rain lets up at all, that is." – Emphasizing her point, Cosmo pointed to the kitchen window, where the rain drops were still splashing against it constantly.  
"Well, it's not like we can't have a good time together at home, right?" – Tails had hugged Cosmo from behind as he said that, to which the young seedrian giggled and continued on to wash the last of the dishes in the sink. After that, the two had gone out into the living room. Even though it was still summer, the cold wind outside and the rain were hardly even matching the season. So Tails had decided to light up the fireplace for a while.  
"It does feel a little…Barbaric to be burning up plants like this." – Cosmo remarked as she looked at Tails throwing the firewood into the fireplace.  
"Well, guess it is one of those necessary evils people on Mobius have to commit not to freeze to death" – The young fox replied, soon lighting up the fireplace. Cosmo shuddered as she saw this – this might not seem out of the ordinary to Tails or any other mobian, but to Cosmo, it was pretty much dead plants meeting their fiery demise. Tails noticed this and remarked: "At least whatever tree was cut down for this firewood…Its death wasn't completely in vain? I…I just don't know."  
Cosmo sighed and replied: "It's alright. I guess there is no point crying over a cut down tree."  
So, after the fireplace was lit up brightly, Tails sat down next to Cosmo, embracing her.  
"Perhaps the tree that was cut down in its prime for firewood…It probably didn't have much to live for." – The young seedrian remarked, looking at the flames in the fireplace.  
"You mean just like me before your return?" – As Cosmo heard this from Tails, she gave him a rather concerned look and said: "What...What do you mean?"  
"Well…It is hard to explain. Let's start out by saying, that, when I met you…I felt as if something had clicked inside me. As if a part of me just broke off, and the only way to fill that void was being together with you…Remember how I promised to protect you back then? That wasn't just out of altruism or chivalry – I genuinely felt that I cannot live on if something bad were to happen to you." - Tails sighed and looked down. - "Not only did your absence leave a void that nothing else could fill, but I felt like I had failed you. I had failed to keep my promise to protect you and hurt you by my own hands…" – As Tails said the last sentence, hi s voice cracked slightly, as he felt his eyes getting teary.  
"Oh…" – Cosmo was left downright disheartened by Tails' story. - "I never thought that my disappearance would have such an effect on you. I'm terribly sorry…"  
"It's alright. You're back with me again, and that's all that matters to me now…I got to admit, even though at first I had questioned my sanity when I saw that you had returned, deep inside, I felt complete once more. You just cannot imagine how miserable I am without you. " – Tails hugged Cosmo as he said that.  
"Tails, no need to stretch it to the extreme like this. I wouldn't take it if you had an attempt on your own life because of me." – The young seedrian replied, sounding downright worried.  
"Actually…" - Tails took a deep breath, as he himself didn't really want to admit it. - "I did." – The young fox let go of Cosmo and slightly moved the fur on his right hand a bit to expose a few cut scars on his arm.  
"Oh my…" – Cosmo was genuinely surprised that she didn't notice these scars when Tails had embraced her the first time after their reunion, or that nobody spoke of this when Tails' friends had gathered at his place as they found out about Cosmo's return.  
"Well, it wasn't exactly an attempt on my own life – just self-inflicted punishment for my failure. And I kind of started out on it pretty late, too – just about a week before your return."  
"Sweet mother Gaia, this is awful…" – Cosmo remarked, covering her mouth with both hands. After a few moments, she embraced Tails once again, crying: "Please, don't ever do that again!"  
"Hey, hey, it's alright. I told you, now that you're back with me again, I'm feeling a whole lot better." – Tails replied, hugging his seedrian girlfriend back. The plantgirl wiped her tears and smiled as she heard this. – "You know, I think it wasn't very smart of me to mention that incident all over again. I think we should probably begin talking about some of the more pleasant memories more often. " – As Tails finished the last sentence, he let go of Cosmo. "I think starting with one that's debatably not so pleasant isn't exactly a smart move, but…Remember when we were looking for a Chaos Emerald on a deserted planet and accidentally got trapped in an underground cave?" – Tails knew that mentioning that smaller-scale incident to Cosmo was probably akin to stepping into a minefield, so he was still unsure whether or not it was right to mention that.  
"It wasn't all that bad, actually – it was actually quite nice to spend some time with just you, even if it was under such circumstances. And we had fun infiltrating the Metarex base, too. As for the incident that got us trapped, I already lived it down. Some things just…Happen. " – The young seedrian remarked, shrugging.  
"Funny thing is, if it weren't for you accidentally pressing that button, we would have never found the Emerald in the first place. Okay, here's to a more pleasant one: Remember when you were decorating a room on board of The Blue Typhoon for a surprise party and I offered my help?"  
"Of course I do. We actually had quite a lot of fun working together like this. Especially when you held me up in the air, helping me decorate higher up in the room."  
"Speaking of that surprise party…Had Vector not messed something up, we wouldn't have a particularly interesting moment to talk about…" – Tails blushed as he said this, but at the same time a mischievous smirk crossed his face, as he also had a rather interesting idea that he thought would probably cheer Cosmo up a bit. In the next few moments, the young fox unexpectedly jumped towards Cosmo, knocking her off the couch and down onto the floor, landing on top of her as well. At first Cosmo was rather shocked and weirded out by Tails' actions, but soon realized what memory Tails was referring to and replied: "Oh…I remember now. When Vector accidentally sent that disco ball flying towards me and you knocked me out of its way, right?"  
"And…Maybe my memory is a little rusty here, but I recall accidentally kissing you when I did." – To emphasize his point, Tails had kissed Cosmo on the lips. The plantgirl had blushed at this, but after Tails let go of her, she remarked: "But this time, it's certainly not an accident. Then again, that certainly cleared my memory up. But how about we get back up on our feet now?"  
"Agreed." – And with that, Tails helped Cosmo get up from the floor and they both got back down onto the couch. The flames in the fireplace were already dying out by the time they did, but it didn't really matter to either of them.  
"And of course, we just cannot forget about what happened back then, on Planet Marmolin." – As Tails said that, both he and Cosmo blushed at this. This definitely wasn't the first time either of them mentioned that little occurrence, but even though it didn't go any further than hand-holding – not even a single hug or kiss – they still blushed whenever they reminisced of it.  
"I find it rather funny that some of the most romantic moments of our life together had happened by accident." – Cosmo remarked, still blushing.  
"It's just like how you said it a few moments ago - some things just happen on their own accord. And there's not much we can do about it. But I accept those moments the way they are – I got to admit, back then, I wouldn't dare to take the first step on my own." – Tails replied, hugging Cosmo once more and wrapping his namesakes around her like a blanket.  
"And yet here you are, actively hugging me." – Cosmo remarked, giggling slightly.  
"Well, I did say 'back then', so a lot has changed since that time, didn't it?" – With that said, Tails hugged Cosmo the tiniest bit tighter as the two continued to relax on the couch for a bit longer. A few moments later, Tails looked at the living room window and noticed that the rain outside has stopped and the skies had cleared up. – "Hey, look, the weather is finally back to normal."  
"So this means we can go out into the Mystic Forest now?" – Cosmo asked as Tails let go of her.  
"I don't see why not." – With that said, the two lovers went to exit their house, but not before Tails made sure that the fire in the fireplace had already snuffed out. Luckily, what remained of the firewood was just smoldering slightly, no signs of actual fire in it. And with that out of the way, Tails and Cosmo exited the house and headed for the forest not too far away from Tails' place. As the two approached the entrance to the Mystic Forest, Cosmo remarked: "This forest certainly looks really beautiful. I got to admit, I'm still amazed by the sheer diversity of landscapes on Mobius. "  
"If you're enjoying the view outside of the forest, then you'll just love it when we get into the forest itself. Or even better – I know a particular lookout spot in the Mystic Forest that allows one to get a view on pretty much the entirety of it." – Tails remarked, grabbing on Cosmo's right hand.  
"Oh…Well, then let's keep going, I suppose." – With that said, the couple had entered the forest.  
While Cosmo was strolling through the forest together with Tails, she admired the beauty of all the trees and lush greenery around her – since it was still summer, the tree leaves, as well as the grass and the bushes, were a nice green color - not too bright, not too dark, pleasing to the eye overall.  
"You were right, Tails. This forest is really beautiful. But I suppose we're yet to arrive to the lookout point you mentioned?" – The young seedrian remarked, looking at her foxy boyfriend.  
"I can actually speed the process up a bit, if you don't mind." – As Tails said that, he lifted Cosmo off the ground by her legs and took a few steps back to get a running start. Cosmo immediately caught on Tails' trail of thought, so she replied: "Are you sure I won't get airsick from this?"  
"Don't worry, I'll try not to go too fast - I'm not like Sonic, who is practically obsessed with speed, you know." - And after Tails said that, he ran on ahead, speeding up with each step. When the young fox felt like he couldn't speed up any further just by running, he spun his tails in a propeller-like fashion, speeding himself up and soon slightly hovering above the ground as he kept moving forward. As for Cosmo, she was looking around as she and Tails practically flew right past all the greenery – even though everything was practically passing right past her, she enjoyed the view, but soon felt a bit sick and closed her eyes. Soon enough, the two had arrived to what seemed to be the tallest oak tree in the forest, which towered way above most of the Mystic Forest's trees.  
"Well…" – Tails said, wheezing as he let Cosmo get back down onto the ground just near the tree. – "Here…We…Are…" – The young fox leaned against the tree trunk, still wheezing and breathing heavily – sure enough, he wasn't getting much exercise lately, so who can blame him? Cosmo didn't exactly enjoy the speedy ride herself, either - she felt a little bit dizzy at first, so she was also leaning against the tree. Soon enough, the two had practically slid down onto the ground. Cosmo looked up at the tree and gasped at how tall it was.  
"Wow… This tree certainly stands out amongst the others here. So, Tails, is this the lookout point you mentioned?" – Cosmo asked, turning to face Tails. As soon as the kitsune had caught his breath, he replied: "Yep. Yes, it is. We just have to fly up to one of the highest branches on the tree, and we'll get quite a good view on the rest of the forest from up there. Just let me get a short rest, and then we'll go up there." – While Tails was resting, Cosmo approached the tree and placed her hand on it. Since Cosmo was capable of communicating with plants, she wanted to see what this tree had to tell her.  
"This tree...It is certainly the oldest in the forest. It has quite a story to tell, as it saw many things happening around it, to both it and the other trees. This oak has witnessed many things happening far and wide throughout the forest, as its roots stretch out throughout it's entirety. As for the memory of when Mobius' Planet Egg was taken from it, it seems to have forgotten how it felt to be drained dry, but it was certainly upset over the near-death state of the other trees in the forest, like a parent upset over their children getting ill." - As Cosmo said the last sentence, she let go of the tree, while Tails stood next to her, slightly shocked.  
"You know, I kind of forgot you had the ability to communicate with some of the non-sentient plants, so you kind of had me off guard when you began saying such things about this tree." - Tails remarked. - "Anyway, shall we fly up to the top of the tree now?"  
Cosmo placed her hand back on the oak tree, and said: "It doesn't seem to mind, so I guess we can go for it." - After the seedrian said that, Tails grabbed her from behind by her waist, once again spun his namesakes in a propeller-like fashion, and soon flew upwards, holding Cosmo. This time, however, Tails wasn't flying as fast as he could, instead trying to maintain a speed that allowed him to still fly up to the tree top while at the same time not going too fast so that his seedrian girlfriend didn't get dizzy again. As for Cosmo, she turned her head slightly to look Tails eye-to-eye, blushing that he held her like that. Soon enough, Tails flew a bit closer towards the towering tree that they were near, and the two had landed on one of the branches higher up on it. Cosmo looked around, enjoying the view – getting to see the forest from far above like this was quite welcome for her. The young seedrian wasn't afraid of heights, either – her moderately low weight and the ability to gently float down using her skirt as a parachute would allow her to get back down to the ground safely even if she were to slightly trip up on the branch.  
"This view…It's just too beautiful for words. " – The plantgirl remarked, looking down. After Tails caught his breath again, he edged a little closer to Cosmo and whispered: "But not even half as beautiful as you are."  
"Oh, Tails…Stop it." – Cosmo replied in a rather flattered tone, blushing. Suddenly, Tails gave her a soft kiss on the cheek, which made the young plantgirl blush even more – so much that her cheeks were almost the same color as the buds on the sides of her head. From that moment onward, however, the two were just silently sitting next to each other, holding hands and enjoying the view. They felt like they could have spent an entire eternity here, but the weather decided that it had other plans - sure enough, the sky was getting covered by the storm clouds once more, so the couple had to go back home.  
"Aww...Just when we were enjoying ourselves, this had to happen." - Tails remarked, jumping off the branch and slowly floating down, with Cosmo following after him. Luckily, the two managed to get out of the forest and back home just moments before the rain had started.  
"Well...I guess that can qualify for a happy memory for the future, can it?" - Tails asked as he practically crashed down onto the couch in the living room, trying to catch his breath.  
"I sure enjoyed myself. The view from above the forest was quite beautiful, too." - Cosmo replied as she also sat down next to Tails.  
"Say, you don't mind if I go over to my workshop for the time being? I have some work to finish." - The young fox asked. - "Don't worry, I'm not ditching you or anything. It's just that, it just feels a little weird to leave my work unfinished with just a few finishing steps remaining."  
"Tails, you don't have to come up with any excuses to get back to your work." - Cosmo answered, hugging Tails. - "I respect that you don't want to leave your work unfinished, as long as you don't spend an entire day on it unless completely necessary."  
From that moment onward, most of the day up until nighttime went fairly routinely for the couple – after Tails had went into his workshop to apply the finishing touches to The Cosmic Tornado, he then went to help Cosmo out with the remaining housework. So, it was understandable that, by the end of the day, they were pretty exhausted. After the typical pre-bed routine, neither of them really had the energy to talk some more - Cosmo and Tails just crashed down onto their bed, falling asleep within mere moments afterwards.


	5. Chapter 4 - Scars and Flashbacks

_I swear, this chapter was a real hell to write. I guess I'll probably take a break from this particular fanfic for a while, especially considering that I have some real life reasons to take care of.  
_

* * *

It was probably one of the few times that Tails woke up before Cosmo did – considering his seedrian girlfriend was a little too exhausted after yesterday's work, this was unsurprising, so the young fox decided not to wake her. After taking care of the typical morning routine, and even preparing some breakfast – of course, cooking pancakes as usual, leaving an extra plate for Cosmo to eat after she wakes up. – Tails had decided that it would be great to finally get out for a test flight on the plane he has been working on so hard for the past few years.  
The past few years…Usually, Tails would build a new plane in a matter of a few months – find the materials, get the blueprints out, get right to work, and in a few months or so, the plane's all ready. But this time, things were a lot more complicated – considering he was doing it to get his mind off of Cosmo during the four years of her absence, it wasn't uncommon of him to either get lost in thought during work, or completely screw something up, albeit unintentionally.  
"I do hope that next time I decide to work on an upgraded plane, I will be working a lot more efficiently..." – Tails thought as he left the hangar gates open, went back into the plane, and got ready for the test flight.  
Meanwhile, Cosmo had already woken up. When she noticed that Tails wasn't sleeping next to her, she went downstairs to see if he is anywhere in the house. After she gotten to the kitchen, she noticed that there was a plate of pancakes and a cup of tea standing on the kitchen table, with a note lying next to them that read: "When you wake up, I'll probably be going out for a test flight. I promise I'll be careful, so don't worry about me. Love, Tails."  
Cosmo went "Aww…" at the last part of the note, and decided to just help herself to the pancakes. During her rather humble breakfast, the plantgirl heard some jet engine noise outside. Seems like Tails had already began the test flight. Cosmo left the halfway-eaten pancakes behind and ran off out of the house, looking up – she saw Tails flying by on his new plane, so she waved to him. Tails waved back and returned to his test flight.  
"Okay, normal flight seems to be going perfectly…Now to see what else this baby is capable of!" – And after Tails thought that, he drove the plane into a u-turn. Cosmo gasped and covered her mouth with her hands – even though she knew that Tails was safe, she still couldn't help but worry about him.  
"Tails, be careful!" – The plantgirl shouted, sounding noticeably worried.  
"Wha?" – Tails asked, not being able to hear Cosmo over the sound of the plane's engines.  
"I said – be careful!" – Cosmo shouted again.  
"He probably won't hear ya." – A voice sounded from behind the young plantgirl. Cosmo turned around and saw Sonic standing right behind her.  
"Oh, hello, Sonic." – Cosmo replied somewhat off-handedly, returning back to watching Tails fly. After a few moments, Sonic remarked: "You know, it's definitely been a while since Tails actually flew on his plane. Lately, he would only use it if it was really needed – like, say, to get me to some places I cannot exactly reach by running. And now? There he is, running a test flight, perfectly content with everything." – Sonic said, looking at Tails' plane through a pair of binoculars he found somewhere.  
"Yeah, I'm really glad to see him being happy again." – Cosmo replied, clasping her hands together.  
"You know, I may be no expert in such matters, but it seems like your return kind of played a part in this change." – Sonic remarked, lowering his binoculars down for a moment. As if to emphasize the blue hedgehog's point, Tails waved to Cosmo right as he flew right near her and Sonic.  
"Huh. Didn't think I would actually be an important part of someone's life." – Cosmo said quietly as she waved back to Tails.  
"Okay, low flight also seems to be going just fine-Whoa!" – Tails barely managed to steer the plane upwards before crashing into a tree. – "Heh. Shouldn't have gotten distracted like this. Now to test out the…" – Tails practically froze as his hands reached the main cannon trigger. – "The…Main…Cannon."  
Suddenly, Tails had a flashback of the one day that scarred him for life – the day of Cosmo's disappearance. It was all still fresh in his memory – the feeling of despair he had experienced when he found out that, to save the universe, he had to practically shoot his loved one dead, the false hope when he saw that Sonic and Shadow attempted to revive Cosmo using Chaos Regeneration…And the complete hopelessness when he found out that the Chaos Regeneration was seemingly unsuccessful. Sure, even though Cosmo was alive and well now, Tails still couldn't forget that awful day…And all it took was a tiny reminder to make him relive the incident in his mind. So now, mentally, Tails was temporarily out of this reality. And of course, that also meant that the kitsune had no control over his body – he was practically paralyzed with fear.

* * *

"It may be just me, but I think there's something wrong with Tails." – Sonic remarked, still looking at Tails through his binoculars. Cosmo immediately tore them out of Sonic' hands and looked through, seeing the look of complete fear and panic on Tails' face. She immediately looked over to where the plane was headed – it wasn't completely out of control, even though the pilot practically passed out, just heading in the same general direction. – and ran towards there, with Sonic running after her. At first he went at a much slower speed than normal, asking Cosmo on the way: "Do you have any idea what's wrong with him?"  
"I don't really know…" – Cosmo replied in her usual quiet voice, before suddenly shouting: "But that doesn't matter right now! We have to save him before he crashes!"  
Sonic nodded and sped back up to his normal speed, running forward to where the plane was presumably going to crash-land. Cosmo couldn't quite keep up with Sonic's pace, so she stopped to take a breath, looking far away into the distance.  
"Now it all depends on him…I do hope Tails at least survives…Oh Gaia, I can't watch!" – Cosmo thought, covering her eyes. Soon she heard a crashing sound in the distance, and when she opened her eyes, she noticed that the plane was out of her vision range now.  
"No…" – Cosmo fell down on her knees in despair. She had thought that Tails didn't survive the crash. Luckily, Sonic soon ran back towards where Cosmo was standing, carrying the unconscious Tails in his arms.  
"Don't worry, he's alright. As for the plane…Well, it will take a while to carry it back to the workshop, that is for certain."  
"I couldn't care less about the plane! What happened to Tails?" – Cosmo shouted, looking over the unconscious fox. Well, 'unconscious' isn't exactly the right term, 'paralyzed with fear' would be a lot more fitting. Cosmo waved her hand in front of him, tried shaking him up, and even kissed him on the lips – Tails didn't even budge, he was still sitting there with a look of complete fear and shock on his face, not moving the slightest bit. Sonic sighed and said: "The most we can do right now is to take him home. As for the plane – later, I'll ask Knuckles to help me get the plane back to Tails' workshop." – And with that, Sonic ran off towards Tails' house, with Cosmo quietly following behind.

* * *

Soon enough, Tails snapped out of his stupor – sure, that 'moment of hesitation' may have been short in reality, but in Tails' mind, it was stretched as far as it could get – and jolted awake. As soon as he came to his senses, the young fox noticed that he was back in his bedroom, lying in his bed with a cold wet rag on his forehead.  
"Whew. Bro, you really scared us back there! Don't ever do that again!" – Sonic said as soon as he noticed that the kitsune was awake. As for Cosmo, she was seemingly standing near the bedroom entrance before Tails woke up, so she ran over to the young fox and hugged him.  
"What…What happened? I don't remember much past the time of my test flight." – Tails asked, rubbing the rag against his forehead.  
"You…You kind of…Passed out in the pilot's seat." – Cosmo replied quietly. At first, Tails struggled to remember what happened, but soon it practically hit his mind like a runaway freight train.  
"I didn't just 'pass out'. That was a full-fledged panic attack." – The kitsune replied in a sorrowful voice, looking down. – "I guess painful memories rear their ugly head at the worst of times."  
For a few moments, the bedroom went completely silent. Sonic knew that lecturing Tails about letting his guilt go would not do all that much – he kind of had the feeling that if those lectures actually worked, Cosmo would have convinced the young fox that everything is okay, preventing any panic attacks from happening in the future. As for the plantgirl herself, the look on her face was a mix of both sorrow and disappointment. Sorrow because she hated to see that Tails still didn't get over his trauma, and disappointment because she actually thought that after yesterday, things would finally get back to normal.  
"Then again, I assumed that my return alone would make things get back to normal. But of course it didn't. His scars run too deep to heal them so easily." – The seedrian thought, frowning.  
"Sonic, Cosmo, I know what you two are going to tell me. That I need to move on from this, that it wasn't my fault, and that it was necessary to end the whole conflict once and for all. That's what I've actually been telling myself for the past few days. And it doesn't work the slightest bit." – Tails turned to face Cosmo. – "Cosmo, I just cannot get over the fact that I had willingly hurt you by my own hands. I promised to protect you, and I completely failed that promise. This is something I'm the most ashamed of in my entire life…" – The young fox paused for a while, took a deep breath, and continued: "I'm sorry. I need some rest for now."  
Sonic and Cosmo exchanged glances, and the former said: "Well, I should probably get going. I've got other matters to take care of. See ya later!" – And with that, Sonic ran out of the bedroom, downstairs, and out of the house.  
"Yeah, right. He just cannot stay in enclosed spaces for long, so he needed an excuse to run off again." – Cosmo said under her breath. She then turned back to face Tails, who, in turn, was looking away from her.  
"Tails, if there's anything I can…"  
"You're still here?" – The kitsune asked in a rather pained, 'barely awake' voice, interrupting Cosmo.  
"Oh…Sorry." – Cosmo got off the bed and went to exit the bedroom, but before she did, Tails replied: "No, I didn't mean it like this."  
"Alright then…" – The plantgirl replied in a somewhat confused tone, then went back and sat down next to Tails. – "Is there anything you wanted?"  
"Cosmo…I'm so sorry that I cannot get over that incident. I…I really tried my best to forget about what happened, but…I just can't." – The fox replied in a rather tired voice covering his face with his hands as he sat upright.  
"I wish I could do something to help you out with this. I really do." – Cosmo replied, hugging Tails.  
"Eh, it's alright. Your presence alone kind of makes me feel better already, if only for a short time." – The mobian replied, hugging his seedrian girlfriend back. – "Right now, I feel like I should just take a short nap. That flight was quite an emotionally exhausting one."  
"Oh…Of course. Do I need to leave?" – Cosmo wriggled out of Tails' embrace and went to exit the bedroom, but was stopped by the young fox saying: "Actually, your presence would, if anything, be only too welcome. I do understand if you have some work around the house to do, though, so…"  
"Well…Even though I have some work to take care of…I understand if you're having a hard time falling asleep after what happened, so I guess I can stay for a while." – And with that, Cosmo took off her shoes and lied down next to Tails. The orange fox embraced her and smiled weakly.  
"Cosmo…I'm sorry that I left you worrying so much." – He said in a half-asleep voice.  
"It's okay, Tails. I know it wasn't your fault." – The plantgirl replied, kissing Tails in the forehead, smiling as the kitsune had fallen asleep. Even though Cosmo was feeling a little drowsy herself, due to how silent their bedroom was and how nice and soft Tails' namesakes actually felt, she knew that she wouldn't really be able to take a nap – she still had housework to do. So, after she made sure that Tails was completely asleep, she once again got out of his grasp – he was only loosely embracing her anyway – and went downstairs. She figured that Tails might probably be a little hungry when he wakes up, so she decided to prepare something for lunch. While she was busy cooking, however, she heard the doorbell ring. The plantgirl ran over to the door to answer, and it turned out that Amy decided to drop by.  
"Hey there, Cos. Long time no see, huh?" – The pink hedgehog asked after Cosmo opened the door. Instead of her usual reply, however, Cosmo quietly said: "You might want to keep a little quiet. Tails is taking a nap at the moment and he better not be disturbed."  
"Oh, I see…" – Amy replied in a somewhat quieter tone. – "You know, if I had something like that happen to me, I would probably want to just lie down in a bed and do nothing myself." – The mobian girl said as she entered the house and sat down on the couch in the living room.  
"Sonic told you about the incident already?" – Cosmo asked quietly, to which Amy simply nodded. The plantgirl then sighed and continued: "I just cannot snap Tails out of it. I thought that things would get back to normal after our talk with him yesterday, but…They just didn't. He just can't seem to get over it." – Cosmo sighed, frowning. She then remembered something and asked: "Well, since you're here, do you want a cup of tea or something?"  
"While I didn't come over for that particular reason...I think I could use some." – After Amy said that, Cosmo ran off to the kitchen to prepare the tea, soon returning with two cups of tea.  
"You know, considering what he went through after your…Disappearance, it's unsurprising that he hadn't fully recovered from the incident." – The hedgehog replied as she took the cup from Cosmo.  
"Yeah, I guess that's understandable. I myself went through the pain of tragically losing my loved ones, so I understand how he must have felt. " – The plantgirl said, taking a sip from her cup of tea. – "But one thing puzzles me: In my case, my relatives and friends from that colony are all gone for good, I cannot do anything to bring them back…And yet I've accepted it and moved on from it. While in Tails' case, even though I had returned, even though I am alive and well, he still cannot get over the incident."  
Amy pondered over something for a moment before remarking: "I guess that's because you actually had someone to rely on. Someone who you could confess all your pain to. Someone who would support you and stay by your side no matter what else happened. Perhaps you should try and return the favor to him."  
Cosmo replied: "I'm trying my best to do so, actually. Any time he brought it up, I would try my best to convince that it wasn't his fault, and-"  
Amy interrupted Cosmo, saying: "I don't really think that's the right approach to helping him recover from the incident. You're kind of treating him like a dying swan, and that doesn't really make the situation any better. "  
"Oh…I…I just don't know what else can I do." – The seedrian replied, frowning and looking down. Amy sighed and said: "Cosmo, I'm no psychologist, but I kind of think that, for starters, you should still treat him as an equal, not as a lost child that needs constant care and protection. "  
"Okay, but what else? That might prevent him from feeling even worse off than he already does, but what then?" – Cosmo asked, putting her cup of tea down.  
"Well…He seems to be stuck in the past just like you were back then, constantly being reminded of all the awful things that happened back then. Just give him a reason to be looking ahead into the future instead of dwelling on his past mistakes, and he'll eventually recover. Just remember – it won't be as quick as you might expect, as it takes time and effort to help a person recover from trauma, as you probably know from experience. But if you try and do your best to help him, eventually it will all pay off. " – Amy replied. Cosmo smiled and took her cup of tea back, then, after taking a sip, remarked: "I didn't know you can actually give some useful life advice every now and then."  
"Well, my thoughts aren't always all about Sonic, you know. I can be pretty reasonable when necessary." – After Amy said that, Cosmo couldn't help but giggle.  
"Anyway…" – Cosmo remarked, standing up from the couch. – "I'm glad to have had some time to chat with you, but I am kind of busy preparing lunch for Tails."  
"You two aren't even married, and you're already being a housewife to him?" – Amy asked in a somewhat snarky tone.  
"I'm doing this on my own volition, actually. I mean, he would probably be a little hungry after he wakes up from his nap, right?" – Cosmo remarked once she got back to the kitchen.  
"Okay, okay. Care if I help you out a bit?" – Amy asked. – "I mean, I didn't exactly come to help you with that kind of work – I just wanted to check on Tails – but I'm sure you would appreciate some help."  
"I guess that would be nice."

* * *

An hour or so later, Tails woke up from his dreamless nap. To say the least, it didn't do much of a good job at making him feel at all rested – rather, he felt more like he was probably going to have trouble falling asleep tonight even though he still felt exhausted. The young fox then drowsily stood up from his bed, went out of his bedroom and then downstairs. Cosmo was already waiting for Tails in the kitchen, having two bowls of soup set on the table already.  
"So, how did your daynap go?" – The plantgirl asked as Tails sat down beside the table.  
"Fairly decent, I guess. At least I wasn't troubled by nightmares." – The kitsune replied. From that moment onward, the two were just quietly enjoying their meals. However, Tails wasn't exactly enjoying the soup that Cosmo and Amy made – not because either of them messed it up, but just because he didn't feel like eating at the moment.  
"You…Don't like it?" – Cosmo asked after she noticed that Tails hardly even ate a few spoonfuls of soup.  
"Nah, it's actually quite great. It's just that…I'm not really feeling up to eating anything right now. Sorry for making your cooking kind of go to waste." – Tails remarked, pushing the soup bowl further away from himself.  
"Okay…I just thought you might be hungry after you wake up. You know, it's still quite sunny out there, so we might go out for a while, if you want to." – Cosmo asked.  
"I guess that would be nice." – The fox replied, quietly sitting there. After Cosmo had finished her meal, both she and Tails soon went to exit the house, deciding to take a quiet walk along the seacoast. As the two were quietly trekking along the seashore near Tails' house, Tails was drowsily leaning on Cosmo's shoulder. Cosmo just smiled at this as she and her kitsune boyfriend continued to quietly walk along the seacoast.  
"You know, you chose quite a nice spot for a house. The view here is always so great." – Cosmo remarked, first looking at Tails' house just nearby, then shifting her gaze to the pretty view from the seacoast.  
"Yeah. But one can get tired of even the most beautiful views in existence." – The fox remarked, sighing. This was certainly not the reply that Cosmo expected, so she asked: "Tails, if there's something bothering you, then…"  
"No, there's nothing bothering me."  
As much as Cosmo wanted to ask Tails again and let him confess about what is troubling him, she knew that bothering Tails for no actual reason wouldn't do much good, so she just went silent after Tails said that. With that, the rest of the walk along the shore went by fairly silently, without Tails and Cosmo talking to each other all that much. In fact, the entire remainder of the day went by completely routinely, nothing much happening – hell, Tails and Cosmo didn't even talk to each other all that much. Once again, it was the case of both sides not really coming to an agreement – Cosmo didn't feel like bothering Tails too much, while Tails was just too tired to talk to Cosmo.  
When the night came around, at first Tails wanted not to bother Cosmo and sleep by himself, but soon found himself unable to fall asleep, despite feeling physically and emotionally tired. So, after tossing and turning for a while, trying to take up a more comfortable position, Tails decided "Screw it.", quietly exited the room and went over to the guest room, where Cosmo currently slept.  
"Cos." – Tails tugged at Cosmo's right arm for a bit – the plantgirl was sleeping in such a position that her left arm was on her chest while her right arm was positioned practically hanging down from the bed. – "Cosmo. Cosmo!"  
The plantgirl sat upright, forcibly woken up, yawned, and asked: "You're having trouble sleeping, Tails?"  
"Yes. You…You don't mind if I sleep with you for tonight?"  
The seedrian sighed and replied: "Alright. But this bed has even less space for two, so I guess we have to sleep up close and personal for the night. "  
Normally, Tails would blush at the realization of this, but right now, it seemed as if the young kitsune was just too tired to care.  
And so, the fox had lied down in the bed next to his seedrian girlfriend. This time, Tails didn't have that much trouble falling asleep – the soothing smell from Cosmo's rosebuds and her warm embrace were doing their work nicely, and soon the young fox surrendered to the oblivion of sleep closing in on his consciousness.


	6. Chapter 5 - Acceptance and Serenity

_This chapter was probably the **true** writing hell for me. Most of the time I had actually wasted often gone by because I usually wrote some text, let it be, and when I opened it again to finish what I started, I went ahead and deleted everything because there was always something that seemed like it was written the wrong way. Even now, I'm not satisfied with how it turned out. So, this is another chapter that is due to a future rewrite.  
Luckily, the next few chapters won't be too angsty or anything like that. I can certainly promise this. Maybe I'll enjoy writing them a lot more, too.  
_

* * *

To say the least, Tails' situation hasn't improved all that much in the past few days. Actually, no – it was even worse off. For the past few days, Tails' daily routine was much of the same – after he woke up and took care of all the morning routine, he would lock himself in his workshop and begin working on something. He avoided talking to Cosmo and being near her, and whenever she came over to his workshop to leave him some food or drink, he would ignore her and blankly stare into one spot until the seedrian left his workshop. When he came back home to sleep, he once again tried to avoid Cosmo entirely. The young seedrian could swear that she heard sobbing coming from Tails' bedroom whenever he came back from his workshop to sleep. This continued for a few days in a row now.  
On one particular day, after Cosmo brought Tails his breakfast and went back into the house, she stood in the middle of the living room for a while, looking around and listening to…Nothing. Aside from the occasional noises coming over from the workshop, the house was otherwise awfully silent.  
"I just wish I could actually help Tails…But he just doesn't want me around. How am I supposed to help him at all?" – The plantgirl lamented, and went back to her housework.  
It all vaulted down into oblivion a few days later, however. Normally, the daily routine would go something like this: Tails woke up before Cosmo, done all the morning routine and then ran off to the workshop for the remainder of the day. Cosmo would wake up a little later, get her own routine out of the way as well and for the rest of the day, she was pretty much taking care of all the housework – cleaning up the house, bringing breakfast/lunch/dinner over to Tails' workshop, all that. Most days, Cosmo had done all of her pre-bed routine while Tails was still away at his workshop, and the young fox only came back by the time Cosmo was already sleeping in the guest room. Despite being a couple and living in the same house, the two pretty much lived like if they were living separately – with Tails trying to ignore Cosmo and Cosmo trying not to disturb Tails respectively.  
On this particular morning, however, when Cosmo woke up, she had heard sobbing coming from Tails' bedroom. As she exited the bedroom and slowly opened the door, she saw that Tails was sitting on the floor, weeping. At first Cosmo just wanted to leave him be and not worsen the situation, but soon realized that she must at least know what was the cause of all of this. The plantgirl slowly entered the room and walked over to Tails. No reaction, Tails was still crying. Cosmo slightly knelt down to the young fox and asked: "What's the matter?"  
Tails didn't respond once again.  
"Tails, please, just tell me, what's wrong." – Cosmo asked again in a more concerned tone. Tails sighed and half-heartedly replied: "Everything."  
"What do you mean by that?" – Cosmo asked in a slightly confused tone. The young fox only sighed in reply, not wanting to continue the conversation.  
"Enough. You saw it all too well – waiting for things to settle on their own did nothing good to the situation. It's about time you take matters into your own hands." – Cosmo thought to herself, and asked again: "Tails, please, just tell me what's wrong. If there is something troubling you, don't be afraid to tell about it."  
Tails sighed and replied: "Alright. But it's going to be quite a long story."  
"Don't worry. I'll gladly hear you out." – The seedrian said, helping Tails stand up from the floor. Tails sat down on his bed, took a deep breath, and spoke up:  
"To say the least…When I first met you, I had actually thought my life was getting even better. My life was quite tough to begin with – I hardly even remembered my parents, and up until I met Sonic, I spent most of my childhood at one rather awful orphanage in the city. While the caretakers hadn't really abused neither me nor the other kids in the orphanage and never neglected to take care of us, the aforementioned other kids were…Rather cruel, to say the least." – Tails shuddered at the unpleasant memories. While Cosmo was certainly caught off-guard by Tails deciding to go ahead and tell his life story to her, she still listened carefully.  
"What did the caretakers do about all the bullying and teasing? Nothing. One day, I ran away from the place. Nothing was keeping me there – I had no friends in the orphanage, and I was sure no one was going to adopt me. I hardly even remember how and when I actually met Sonic afterwards…But we've gotten along fairly well and it was not uncommon of me to tag along with him on some of his adventures. So, that was the point when my life has taken a turn for the better. I had actually thought it was going to stay that way. Then, over four years before now, you crash-landed on the planet. I already told you about how you made me feel when I first saw you. But about what I felt when you had disappeared…I did hold back a bit when I was talking about it." – Tails took another deep breath, as he was about to bring up another unpleasant memory.  
"I was but an empty shell of my former self. Even though on the outside I mostly pretended to be my usual cheerful self, on the inside, I was practically screaming in sorrow and anguish. And of course, there was the guilt." – Tails paused for a moment, shuddering. – "Those scars you saw on my hands back then? They were just the more recent ones. I constantly sought to punish myself for the biggest mistake of my life – for letting you down and basically killing you by my own hands. One nagging thought was always in the back of my head: 'This is all your fault and you must be punished.' "  
(Flashback)  
"Aargh!"  
Another swipe of a thin razor blade across the fur on the young fox's hand. Another bleeding wound left behind. Another cry of pain. And the nagging voice in the back of Tails' mind, constantly repeating: "You deserve to be punished."  
What would Cosmo think of him if she saw him like this, constantly inflicting more and more razor wounds on himself completely willingly? She would be horrified. She would be disgusted. She wouldn't believe that this emotional trainwreck actually used to be the young boy that she fell for way back then.  
And yet, Tails didn't bother with it.  
"Cosmo is dead. She died by my own hands. It was all my fault. I must be punished." – That was the thought running through Tails' mind as he continued to inflict more and more painful wounds on himself. Soon enough, the pain was getting too overwhelming, and Tails passed out. The last thing he remembered from that particular memory was a sound of someone barging into his house through the front door.  
(End of flashback)  
"And that didn't happen just once. I don't really remember how often, but I certainly didn't stop up until your return." – Tails said, finishing this particular part of the story and letting Cosmo analyze what she just heard.  
The plantgirl was looking noticeably horrified.  
"I…I…I'm terribly sorry you had to suffer like this because of me." – There Cosmo was, back to her usual, cowering self, if only for just a moment. – "But I don't understand one thing…I thought that, with my return, our life was going to get back to being moderately normal."  
"I thought so too, Cosmo. But it wasn't just your disappearance that had fazed me so much, you know. It was the fact that I had hurt you by my own hands. The nightmares and panic attacks didn't start until later after your return, because…Well, your return was a little sudden. I was rather happy and content with everything. But then some painful memories reared their ugly head again, and I was left feeling even guiltier, as your return basically meant that I had to answer for my sins to the one person that suffered the most from them." – Tails sighed as he finished his speech. This was the situation where Cosmo knew that speech alone wouldn't convince her foxy boyfriend and she decided to take a slight risk.  
The plantgirl tightly embraced the kitsune, holding him closely to herself. At first, Tails was a little confused, and asked: "Cosmo…What is that all about?"  
"Tails, tell me something." – Cosmo took a deep breath and continued: "If I didn't forgive you, would I be hugging you right now? Would I be trying my best to reassure you? Would I go as far as to convince Gaia herself to let me return to the mortal world so that I can be with you again?"  
"Well…" – The onslaught of questions was a bit overbearing, but in the end, they all led to the same answer. "I guess you wouldn't."  
"See? Don't worry about it, Tails. Dwelling on this incident won't do you any good. What's done is done, and there's no need to worry about it." – Cosmo wanted to find a way for Tails to get his mind off of the incident, and she immediately thought of something. – "How about we go out into the Mystic Forest again? I mean, you haven't gone outside in quite a while, so I suppose a breath of fresh air might be able to ease your troubled mind."  
"Actually…That would be nice."

Just like back then, Cosmo and Tails had wandered rather deep into the forest, right to the same tallest tree that they had climbed on during their date less than a week ago. This time, however, neither Tails nor Cosmo really felt like going up to the top of the tree, instead just quietly lying next to each other in the shade of it. Tails had quietly leaned on to his seedrian girlfriend's shoulder, seemingly half-asleep. Cosmo smiled at this, and slightly pet Tails on the back of his head. The young fox replied with a satisfied sort-of-purring noise, which made Cosmo giggle.  
"You seem to be perfectly content with the current situation." – The plantgirl said, still petting Tails.  
"It's just that…It's so nice and calm here. I just love being up close and personal with you like that." – The kitsune replied, moving his head in such a way that his left ear brushed against Cosmo's shoulder slightly. The green-haired girl embraced her boyfriend and asked: "You're feeling a lot better now, are you?"  
Tails just quietly nodded, and Cosmo let go of him, for now just sitting next to him and holding his hand. The two sat there for a few more moments before Cosmo asked: "So, did you have any plans for the near future?"  
"Well…Depends on your definition of "near future", of course." – Cosmo giggled at the young kitsune's reply, and she then said: "I meant in the nearest future. The next few days, maybe even a week. Myself, I wanted to see a bit more of Mobius. For example, I always wanted to see a Mobian city up close – back when I crash-landed on Mobius, I hadn't had much of a chance to do so."  
Now this is where Tails has gotten a little nervous, and he replied: "Yes, well…Look, the city is a rather nice place, but…I don't really think it's a good place for an alien to hang around in. I can't guarantee that the citizens won't mistreat you or won't think of you as another invader."  
"But they've never seen any of my kind, how would they know-" – Tails didn't let his girlfriend finish her sentence and said: "True, but they are pretty suspicious of any and all aliens. I can convince them that you're here on peaceful terms, but I doubt they would think about an alien walking around in broad daylight as anything normal. Unlike the planets whose inhabitants thrive entirely on doing business with other races, we barely even have any two-way communications with most alien races. What little contact we had with any and all alien races…It certainly wasn't going on peaceful terms."  
"Oh." – Cosmo, of course, understood what Tails meant. – "I get it. So, the city is off limits to me?"  
"Well, not completely off limits. We can go out into there, sure, but…I can't guarantee that we won't be getting any suspicious glares directed at us or whispers behind our backs." – Tails replied, frowning.  
"It doesn't really matter to me what complete strangers would think about who I am. I guess if it doesn't go too far, then I suppose it won't be much of a problem." -  
"Alright. But I'm certainly not going tomorrow. I still have a project to work on, you know." – Tails said, sliding back down onto the ground a tiny bit. Cosmo was a little curious just what Tails was working on, and so, after a few moments of silence, she slightly turned to face the young kitsune and asked: "By the way, what was that project, anyway?"  
"Oh, just an upgrade for the Cosmic Tornado. I figured that simply repairing it won't do, and that I might improve the failsafe system while I'm at it. Make it easier to repair in case of another unsuccessful landing, make said landings less dangerous for the pilot – you know, just all the failsafe necessities." – Tails answered in his more usual, cheerful voice. He certainly liked discussing such matters with others, but most of them wouldn't really listen. And yet here Cosmo was, ready to hear him out on something that became both his field of work and his hobby at the same time.  
"You seem to be really passionate about mechanics and engineering. I wish I could learn something about this field of work as well." – Cosmo replied, looking up a bit.  
"Sure thing. But are you sure you can handle this?" – Tails realized that it sounded like an insult to his girlfriend's intelligence, and immediately corrected himself: "Not that I think you're not smart enough for mechanics, it's just that…" – Cosmo just giggled at the young fox's bashfulness.  
"Now that's the Tails I remember." – The plantgirl replied in a somewhat laughing voice. – "I may not be a natural at mechanics, but this doesn't mean I completely cannot grasp them. After all, I did live most of my life on a seedrian spaceship."  
"Very well then. We'll start whenever you feel like it."  
"That would be great." – And with that, Cosmo finished the conversation. For the next hour or so, the two were just quietly sitting next to each other, holding hands and giving each other the occasional loving looks, as the only sounds around them were the distant chirping of birds, and the sound of leaves and grass being rustled by the gentle wind.


	7. Chapter 6 - The City

_So, um, I do feel like I messed up some moments in this particular chapter, so chances are that this one will also be a rewrite candidate. And as always, I'm terribly sorry if either Shadow or Shade seem a bit OOC in their moments._

* * *

After the discussion that happened between Tails and Cosmo a few days ago, everything seemed to have been going back to normal. Well, as normal as it can get for a mutant and an alien living together – Tails was still busy tinkering with his mechanisms in his workshop, sure, but at least he wasn't acting completely obsessed with his mechanisms. Cosmo, meanwhile, was quietly doing all the housework and not complaining the tiniest bit – after all, she wasn't the type of person to just sit around and do nothing while her boyfriend is busy at his workshop.  
This day was a more unusual one, however, as Tails decided to take a day off from working with his machines at the workshop, and for a good reason – he needed to get out into the city to buy a month's supply of various necessities. Normally, Tails would just take the train to the city – there was a train station in the Mystic Ruins – then buy all things necessary and go back home. This time, however, Tails had wanted to go to the city together with Cosmo. After Tails had counted off how much money would go on all of the necessary things, he found that he would still have enough money to buy something extra, too. Usually, that extra something were either new instruments or more parts for the new mechanisms created by the young fox, but this time around, Tails had decided that he might as well buy Cosmo some new clothes. Sure, he liked the flower-like dress that Cosmo wore all the time, and there were no issues with it anyways – the damage done to it would repair itself as easily as just putting the torn parts back together without using a sewing kit, and any and all stains were also rather easy to wash out, but Tails still wanted to see Cosmo in some different clothes.  
So, after finishing his calculations, the young kitsune went to the guest room, where Cosmo was quietly reading a book. As Tails had approached the plantgirl, she looked up and asked: "Is there something you wanted?"  
"Well…Today, I was going out into the city to buy some necessary stuff, and wondered if you might want to tag along – after all, a few days ago, you told me you wanted to see the city up close." – Tails replied a little nervously.  
"I don't see why not." – The plantgirl replied, putting her book down and standing up.  
"Oh, and once there, we'll go get you some new clothes." – Tails added as his seedrian girlfriend stood up from the couch.  
"Why would I need new clothes? Is there something wrong with my usual ones?" – The plantgirl asked, sounding a little confused.  
"No-no-no, it's not about that!" – Tails replied in a rather defensive tone, feeling like he might have upset Cosmo. – "What I meant to say is…Here, on Mobius, most people usually have to wear different clothes for different occasions."  
"Oh…Well, I didn't quite understand it at first because…I hadn't really ever changed my clothes throughout most of my life. You see, the dresses most seedrian females wear are made of a material that easily stretches to accommodate the wearer's body. " – Cosmo slightly pulled on the sleeve of her dress, with the form of the sleeve not changing the slightest bit after she let go of it, emphasizing the plantgirl's point. – "But if it is necessary that I get some other clothes…Then I suppose I might as well go for it."

* * *

The trip over to Station Square went by fairly easily – the train was going smoothly, there were no interventions or attacks from Eggman or anything like that. Sure, there were a few occasional glares at Cosmo given by the passengers on the train, but they still tried to keep it all quiet, as no one wanted to get into any trouble.  
As soon as Tails and his seedrian girlfriend exited the station over at the city, they almost immediately bumped into not one, but two familiar faces – Shade and Amy, to be specific. Right now, the two were in their usual clothes – Shade was wearing a black leather jacket, a white undershirt, blue jeans and black shoes, while Amy wore her usual all-red attire – red dress, red shoes, red headband. And apparently, the two were in the middle of a conversation. It didn't take long for Shade to notice the two, as she greeted them: "Long time no see, lovebirds! How's it going?"  
"Fairly average, I guess. And there was no need for the "lovebirds" part, you know. " – Tails replied.  
"Hey, I'm just teasin'. So, what about that recent conflict between you two? Amy and I were just discussing it – I heard that things weren't exactly going all that smoothly between you two for the past few days."  
"We talked this one out. There are no more issues between us, and we left all our usual problems in the past." – Tails replied, slightly hugging Cosmo by her waist. The plantgirl didn't really say anything, and just gave out her usual kind smile.  
"Glad to hear everything's going okay between you two." – Amy finally spoke up. – "So, what brings you two to the city?"  
"Oh, I just needed to get some necessary things, and that's about it. That, and I wanted to buy Cosmo some new clothes." – Tails replied, checking the PDA he had brought along.  
"Yes, Tails told me that I might want some different clothes for different occasions or something." – Cosmo replied quietly.  
"So, right off to the clothes shop at once, right?" – Amy asked.  
"Not really. First, I have to make sure that I'll still have enough money left for the new clothes. First off, we'll get to the convenience store and buy all the necessities." – Tails said, checking the street map on his PDA as it calculated a path to the convenience store from their current position. – "Then, from there, if the amount of money is enough, we'll head over to the clothes shop."  
"But I thought you also had to buy some mechanical parts for those inventions of yours, didn't you?" – Shade asked.  
"Not really. In fact, the very money that I planned to spend on the mechanical parts will actually go on the new clothes for Cosmo." – Tails replied, pressing a few more buttons on his PDA and checking the calculations he made back at home.  
"Tails, I appreciate what you're doing for me, but you don't really have to. I mean, you would probably be out of work for quite a while with no mechanical parts available, right?" – Cosmo asked in a shy tone.  
"Nonsense. You are much more important to me than my hobby or those machines I'm working with could ever be." – Tails replied, patting Cosmo on the head slightly. The plantgirl just smiled shyly, Amy just cooed "Aww…", while Shade commented to no one in particular: "Cheesy, but I guess it works."

* * *

While Tails was busy with shopping at the convenience store, Cosmo, Amy and Shade had stayed behind, with Amy telling Cosmo some things about Mobian society. At the moment, Amy had told Cosmo about typical Mobian marriage proposals.  
"You know, most of your traditions do have some similarities to those of seedrians. A piece of jewelry is also used for proposal for marriage in our society, but it's not exactly something as small and mundane as a ring – it's usually a diadem with a Star Amber."  
"Amber? Really?" – Amy asked, somewhat skeptical. Cosmo chuckled and replied: "Unlike the ordinary amber that is fairly common, Star Amber comes from the sap of the Matriarch Trees – those trees are basically female seedrians that had lived their full lifespan out. The Star Amber has got its name from how brightly it shines under the light – as bright as a star."  
"And your amulet is also made from amber of some sort, right?" – Amy asked, looking over the red amulet that Cosmo wore most of the time. The plantgirl looked over the shining red crystal and replied: "Well, this one doesn't use any Star Amber per se – it actually uses some unknown crystalline material, but said material seems to have been artificially modified to hold back the latent energy of a seedrian, thus preventing any transformations even in the direst of circumstances."  
"You know what? I think Tails might want to run a scan of this thing later. You know, in case you'll need a duplicate of this amulet for some reason." – Shade said, looking off to the side and at the shop entrance, waiting until Tails comes back from the store.  
"Well, if he could artificially replicate a Chaos Emerald, who's to say he wouldn't be able to replicate an energy inhibitor?" – Amy asked, shrugging.  
"Knowing how much of a genius he is…But I doubt that this planet has the material necessary for creation of another of those amulets." – Cosmo said, looking around the urban environment she was in. And with that, the conversation screeched to a halt. That is, until Tails exited the store with the bags containing all the things he had to shop for.  
"Oh, we were just discussing your mechanical genius, Miles." – Shade said casually, making the fox drop both bags. – "Specifically, Amy told me about the one time you managed to create an almost perfect replica of a Chaos Emerald."  
"Not really, the conversation kind of trailed off to this subject." – Amy said, interrupting Shade. – "At first we were enlightening Cosmo about some Mobian society traditions, then the conversation kind of trailed off to that amulet she wears all the time, and…Well, Cosmo here wondered if you could be able to duplicate that amulet of hers, or at least create a working replica of it."  
"I didn't really say anything like that. You brought the whole topic up first, to be specific." – The plantgirl replied shyly.  
"Actually…If I had some time to scan it and identify the material, then maybe there would be some odds of being able to create a replica of said amulet, or at the very least, create something functionally similar." – Tails said, picking both shopping bags up. – "But right now, that is of no concern. We still have some clothes to get for Cosmo, remember?"  
"And I think I know just the right shop for the occasion. It should be just nearby." – Amy said, and before Tails could check the map on his PDA for the location of the nearest clothing shops, the pink hedgehog grabbed both him and Cosmo and ran in what one would presume was the route to the shop. Shade just sighed and trailed behind the three.

* * *

It didn't take long to get to the shop that Amy had mentioned, and sure enough, it was a rather nice place – it didn't look like the kind of shop where overpriced clothes would be sold, but it wasn't the "second-hand" kind of shop either – in other words, right in the happy medium. As soon as Amy, Cosmo, Tails and Shade entered the shop, Amy immediately took Cosmo's hand and ran with her towards the nearest shelf full of various articles of clothes, while Tails and Shade followed after them, albeit with a little less enthusiasm.  
"Okay, you're gonna love this one- No, too bright for you- Nah, this one's too dark- Wait, why didn't they throw this away ages ago, it's out of fashion by an entire-" – Amy was being her usual chatterbox self, rapidly picking up various dresses, sort-of-applying them to Cosmo, then throwing them back on the shelves, rinse and repeat.  
"Tails, would you specify exactly what I need here? I think Amy here went a little overboard." – Cosmo said to her foxy boyfriend, turning to the side slightly.  
"Let's see here…" – Tails pressed a few buttons on his wrist PDA – usually, he used the PDA for writing in a list of what things he needed to buy, and this time was no exception – it's just that before going out this day, he wrote in another list, and right now, he checked that particular list. – "A nightgown, a sundress, some winter clothes – gotta think ahead – a swimsuit – beach season's not over after all…And, yes, that's about it."  
"Okay, guess we'll start out with choosing a proper sundress." – Before Cosmo could ask anything, Amy grabbed her by her hand and dragged her toward the hangers with various dresses.  
"You know…" – Amy looked for a proper sundress, and noticed a rather nice-looking white one, which she then handed to Cosmo. – "I think this one should be just about perfect. Off to the fitting room now!"  
While Tails and Shade waited by next to a hanger with some other articles of clothing, Amy and Cosmo ran off to the fitting rooms. It didn't take all that much before Cosmo came out of the fitting room wearing the white sundress that Amy gave her. Cosmo looked over herself, and just now, Tails had noticed that Cosmo had actually took her red amulet off from her dress and had it attached to the sundress.  
"Charming. Quite charming. What do you think, Tails?" – Amy asked, getting Tails' attention. The young fox walked over to the two and took a good look over Cosmo's clothes.  
"It…Looks rather nice…White is…Definitely your color." – Tails did stutter up a tiny bit, but otherwise managed the answer just fine.  
"Okay, then I guess we'll be taking this one."  
"Yes…It is quite comfortable, actually." – Cosmo said, looking over herself a tiny bit more. Meanwhile, Amy ran off for a while, and soon came back with a white hat adorned with a light green ribbon. The pink hedgehog then practically slammed the hat on to Cosmo's head, getting it slightly over her eyes. Cosmo barely struggled to pull her head out of it and put it back on properly, looking over it some more.  
"White really **is** your color." – Tails said, readjusting the hat on Cosmo's head a tiny bit. The plantgirl smiled shyly, and asked: "You…Really think so?"  
"Alright, we still have some other articles of clothing to go through, you know. I guess you will buy this one for her, right, Tails?" – Amy asked.  
"Yes, I think this one will be perfect for those afternoon outings. So, what we'll be choosing next?"

* * *

The clothes shopping went by fairly quickly – sure, Cosmo had some modesty issues with choosing the swimsuit, but other than that, there were no difficulties with anything.  
"Well, guess that's it. I suppose we can call it a day and go home now." – Tails said as Cosmo and Amy exited the store, each holding a bag with the clothes that they had bought.  
"Come on, Tails, you have barely gone any further than the yard of your house recently. Why won't you and Cosmo take a walk around the city while Shade and I get all the stuff back to your place?" – Amy asked, nudging Shade in the shoulder. At first, the echidna wanted to protest, but all she really replied with was an exasperated sigh.  
"Just because my teleporter recharges quickly and runs on a Chaos Emerald doesn't mean you can feel free to use my teleportation for all the mundane purposes, you know." – Shade said to Amy as the two took Tails and Cosmo's bags and went to the train station.  
"Come on, these two deserve to have a proper outing with each other. And carrying those bags after they are long done shopping would ruin the mood completely, don't you agree?" – Amy's voice kind of trailed off into the distance as Tails and Cosmo headed to the opposite direction of where the pink hedgehog was going with the terracotta echidna.  
"So, where are we going now?" – Cosmo asked.  
"I don't really know. What kind of place do you have in mind?" – Tails asked back, slightly holding on to Cosmo's waist as they kept walking. The plantgirl noticed this and blushed, replying: "Well…I did want to see the city, so I guess a simple tour around the area near the station should be just enough, at least for today."  
"I actually had a different idea. What do you say we go to a nearby café and I'll get you something sweet?" – Tails asked, still not letting go of his girlfriend's waist.  
"Fine with me." – Cosmo replied. As the two kept walking, Tails remembered the conversation that Amy and Shade had mentioned, and asked: "Cos?"  
"What is it?" – The plantgirl asked back.  
"You know…I was wondering…Just how much of your power that amulet you're wearing is holding back? As in, does your whole life depend on it, or you can take it off for prolonged periods of time?"  
Cosmo just giggled – this was probably the one time where Tails was the less knowledgeable person on the matter they were discussing, not the other way around.  
"Not really. My life doesn't depend on it as much as you think it does. Sure, it does prevent my transformation from going off against my will, but even then, seedrian transformations usually only happen in the times of great distress." – Cosmo replied, fiddling with the chain on her amulet.  
"Basically, it's a survival mechanism?" – Tails asked, and the young seedrian replied with a quiet nod. – "And this means that you can take it off for prolonged periods of time without any consequences?"  
"As long as there is nothing too extreme going on." – Cosmo replied.  
"Okay. Thanks for telling me about that. You know, it's interesting how it not only manages to be a strong inhibitor…But also a rather nice-looking accessory." – The kitsune said, attempting to compliment Cosmo. The plantgirl blushed and replied: "You really think it looks good on me?"  
"Of course it does." – The two shared a brief hug as Tails said that. Soon enough, the couple had arrived to a fairly small ice cream café. The female raccoon waitress at the counter didn't even bat an eyebrow at the two strange-looking customers that had entered the café – the first reason being that commenting on their…Weirdness would be rude, and the second reason being that she was way too bored to comment.  
"Welcome. What will you be having?" – The waitress asked in a "don't care" kind of tone.  
"Let me speak up here." – Tails whispered to Cosmo, then turned to face the waitress and said out loud: "I'll just have the usual orange ice cream. As for my girlfriend here, she'll have a plain vanilla ice cream." – After that, the couple went over to a table near the window, and soon had the ice cream served to them. Tails didn't eat his ice cream until Cosmo even touched hers. Right now, however, the plantgirl was a little unsure about it.  
"In all honesty, it looks like a simple ball of snow. Is it really that good?" – The seedrian asked, poking the scoop of vanilla ice cream with her spoon.  
"Well, it's usually well-liked by most mobians, but I'm pretty sure that something like that would be an acquired taste among seedrians. In any case, one's usually supposed to eat it before it melts. Here. " – Tails took the spoon from Cosmo's hand, scooped up a tiny bit of the vanilla ice cream, and spoon-fed it to her. At first, the plantgirl took some time to savor the taste, then replied: "It really tastes rather wonderful."  
Tails chuckled, handing Cosmo her spoon back, and said: "Vanilla ice cream is the choice for when you just don't know what you are in the mood for or hadn't tried any ice cream before. Come on, eat it before it melts. "  
Cosmo didn't need to be asked twice – she ate her portion of the vanilla ice cream rather slowly, while Tails didn't really take his time all that much, just eating his portion of orange ice cream at a moderate pace. After the two had finished their portions, Tails paid up for the desserts and they soon left the café.  
"You were right, Tails. This was certainly an enjoyable treat." – Cosmo said.  
"I knew you were going to like it. So, I suppose we can walk around the city some more, and then we'll call it a day?" – Tails asked, embracing Cosmo by her waist. Just before the plantgirl could reply, someone struck Tails in the head from behind, and a pair of scaly hands grabbed Cosmo from behind – one hand keeping her suspended in the air by her waist, while the other covered her mouth.  
"Well, well, well. Would you look at that? Two freaks walking around in broad daylight." – A rather haughty female voice said from right behind the two. Before Tails could get up and identify who the voice belonged to, he suddenly felt something heavy pinning him down right in the back.  
"I do recognize one of them – he's that annoying sidekick of Sonic. Well, he got his **side kicked** alright." – The other voice was a more masculine one, and just as the owner of the voice said that sentence, he laughed at his own terrible pun.  
"And what about the girl, boss?" – The third voice, that also sounded rather masculine, but was a bit higher pitched, asked.  
Cosmo barely managed to look behind at just who ambushed her and Tails in broad daylight – they were a group of reptilian-mobians, with the two rather buff ones who held her up in the air and kept Tails pinned down being a purple viper and an orange python respectively. The third reptilian-mobian was a female black cobra. Cosmo didn't really have much time to analyze their clothes, but she did notice that said clothes weren't exactly of the neat kind.  
"Let's just leave the kid here and take the girl. She's not much, but just enough for you guys to have some fun with." – Whatever it was that they were going to do to her, Cosmo did not like it the slightest, but since her mouth was shut by a scaly hand, she could only protest with a loud "Mmmph!"  
"Leave these two alone." – A rather familiar male voice said from somewhere above. The reptilian-mobians looked around to see the source of the voice, and as they looked up at the top of a building, they saw someone standing up there. And that person was none other than Shadow.  
"Whoa, look at this amateur. Standing on top of a building, thinking he's hot stuff or something." – One of the thugs said. Clearly, he didn't know just who he was referring to.  
"I'm telling you – let these two go and get out of here. Right now." – Shadow said, not even moving from where he stood.  
"Fat chance, black quills!" – The black cobra said, hissing for a few moments as she ended her sentence.  
"On three, you let them go. One…"  
"He's just bluffing, mistress. Let's get going now." – The python thug said.  
"Two…"  
"Sorry, you fail at being intimidating." – The leader of the thug group said.  
"Three."  
A sudden flash. The python that was pinning down Tails falls flat onto his face, with the young kitsune barely managing to roll to the side and dodge the falling body. A whooshing sound just nearby. The other thug lets go of Cosmo and covers his crotch, wincing in pain as he falls down. Tails gets up and sees that Shadow is standing just in front of the third reptilian-mobian, holding her by her neck.  
"Do I need to repeat myself?" – The hedgehog asks in a deadpan tone.  
"Eh-heh-heh…No, not really…We'll just…Take our leave now!" – The viper replies with a rather stupid smile. Shadow let go of her, and soon enough, she runs off, with the two thugs barely following her – after all, they each got incapacitated in a single strike from Shadow, so they couldn't really run as fast.  
"Try to be a bit more careful wandering around the streets like that next time, will you?" – The black hedgehog asked in the same deadpan tone as he helped Tails get up.  
"Okay, we'll try to. Thank you, Shadow. We really owe you one." – The kitsune said, wiping the dust off of his fur.  
"Thank you for your help." – Cosmo replied modestly. Shadow didn't say anything and just walked away.  
"So much for that walk around the city." – Tails said, looking around. Sure enough, the road around the café was rather empty, not a single person nearby. – "You know what, I think we're done here."  
"Agreed." – And with that, the couple headed to the train station. Meanwhile, Shadow was already back up on top of a nearby building, watching over the fox and the seedrian.  
"If I didn't know any better, I'd say you kind of have a thing for these two." – A voice of an all-too-familiar bat sounded from behind Shadow. The black hedgehog didn't even bat an eye, still looking at the couple just quietly going back to the more crowded part of the city.  
"I merely did what I felt was right. That's all you have to know." – The ultimate lifeform replied in his usual deadpan voice.  
"You may be the ultimate lifeform, but you're definitely not the ultimate liar." – Rouge said, walking over a little closer to Shadow. The hedgehog sighed and replied: "Tell me, Rouge, what you see when you look at these two? Aside from what is visible to the naked eye, of course."  
"Personally, I see a couple that, despite the fact that they're not meant to be together, still share a strong romantic bond."  
"No, romantic bonds usually break way too easily. There is much more to it. The bond between these two is something that isn't broken even by the worst possible circumstances – even when Cosmo was assumed to have been gone for good, Tails didn't completely give up hope for her return. And Cosmo went as far as to try and speed up the process of her recovery. Either by her sheer willpower, or by help of some divine being. But even the latter scenario is not so simple – one wouldn't usually be able to ask whatever is out there in the afterlife to let them come back to life just because they have some unfinished business back in the mortal world. It wasn't just the physical vessel created by Chaos Regeneration that bound Cosmo back to this world – it was her bond with Tails. " – Shadow replied, noticing how the couple disappeared off somewhere further in the distance. Rouge was a little confused, so she asked: "Why are you suddenly so interested in inane mortal feelings?"  
"I may not have an easy grasp on emotions, but there is just something fascinating about a bond that even the inevitable and the irreversible couldn't break." – Shadow replied somewhat cryptically. Rouge just shrugged it off and flew away, while Shadow waited for a while more before using Chaos Control to teleport somewhere further away.

* * *

Meanwhile, Tails and Cosmo quietly made it back to the train station, where Amy and Shade had already waited, seemingly having had loaded off all the bags that they had to carry back to Tails' house.  
"Oh, look who's-" – Amy quickly noticed that Tails' fur was covered in some road dust, so her tone shifted: "Whoa, Tails, your fur is all covered in dust. What happened?"  
"Well, we-" – Cosmo didn't have a chance to go even halfway through her sentence, as Tails said: "I just tripped up. Nothing too major."  
"That boot mark on your chest fur suggests otherwise. What you two have gotten into?" – Shade asked.  
"That's what I wanted to tell about. We were quietly taking a stroll through the city, but we got attacked by those criminals out of nowhere. Had it not been for Shadow, who knows what they would have done to me and Tails…" – Cosmo replied, shuddering at the thought of just what those street thugs had in store for her.  
"Wait, Shadow actually saved you?" – Amy asked with a slight note of disbelief.  
"We ourselves had a hard time believing it." – Tails remarked.  
"Look, I couldn't care less about how this happened or who saved your butts from those random criminals, but one thing's for certain – you probably wandered into the 'seedy part of town', so to speak." – Shade replied as she and the others had went back to the train station.  
"Not really, we just went to a certain café not too far away from here. A fairly average café, nothing too unusual about it. Though it was in the quiet part of the city, so maybe that's why they were given an opportunity to attack us there." – Cosmo said quietly.  
"Eh, whatever. I suppose you two will be heading back home now?" – Shade asked.  
"Yeah, I think Cosmo and I had enough for today." – Tails replied as he and Cosmo entered the train.  
"Okay, whatever. Amy and I will wander around the city some more, then. See ya!" – Coincidentally, just after that, the train for the Mystic Ruins had left. Tails and Cosmo had taken a seat just near the entrance, and tiredly leaned on to each other's shoulders.  
"Well, this day was quite a doozy." – Tails said in a somewhat tired voice.  
"A…What?"- Cosmo asked in the same slightly exhausted voice.  
"A doozy. As in, quite out of the ordinary. In any case, I just hope Amy and Shade didn't mess up with getting all the things we purchased back to our place." – Tails said, looking off somewhere to the side. He barely noticed that Cosmo had fallen asleep, leaning on his shoulder – the plantgirl was certainly rather tired from all of the events throughout the first half of the day, and did feel like she needed a nap. Tails smiled quietly, and grabbed Cosmo by her waist again, left with just his thoughts and the occasional chatter of the passengers for the rest of the way back to Mystic Ruins.


	8. Chapter 7 - Constancy And Change

_Ugh. This chapter was a bit of a writing pain. I think I'll take a break from this particular fic for a while and get back to that other fanfic I had left in the dust for quite a while. Don't worry, however - I will still continue to work on this fanfic as well._

* * *

It was a sunny summer day. Tails and Cosmo had decided to go out to the Emerald Coast beach, as they still wanted to enjoy the main attraction of summer, and because Cosmo never really been out on a beach before. After packing all necessary things up, the couple headed out into the city and to the beach entrance. Of course, it turned out that they weren't the only ones wanting to enjoy the summer sun – their friends had headed out to the beach as well.  
Sonic was running laps around the beach, trying to set a new speed record. Amy, who wore a red two-piece swimsuit, was just quietly sitting on a beach towel and watching the blue hedgehog run by. Shade, wearing an entirely black two-piece, was just quietly relaxing on a beach deck chair, not paying attention to the noise that Sonic was causing, and finally, Cream and Vanilla were sitting a bit off to the side under a beach umbrella, discussing something. Just as Tails and Cosmo entered the beach, Sonic barely ran by the two before stopping, turning around and greeting the couple: "Look who showed up! Long time no see, you two! How's it going?"  
"Hi, Sonic. Cosmo and I decided to go to the beach today. You know, while the beach season still lasts." – Tails remarked as he and Cosmo looked around for a spot where to leave all the beach stuff they brought along.  
"You certainly chose a great day to do so – the weather is perfectly sunny and, even though I didn't really check it, I'm sure the water is of the right temperature for swimming. Well, got to keep going now!" – And with that said, Sonic continued to run.  
"So, Tails, would you explain why did we take so many things?" – Cosmo said as Sonic ran off, setting the rather sizeable beach bag down onto the sand.  
"While the stuff here is not completely necessary, it's still great to have if you want to have a good time on the beach." – Tails looked through the beach bag, taking random things out of it as he kept talking. – "Lying on the sand is nothing too bad, but it tends to get stuck on you, so instead, one has to place a beach towel to sit or lie on." – The kitsune threw an orange beach towel off to the side. Later he took out the swimsuit that Cosmo bought a few days ago and said, handing it to her: "Okay, you go to that changing cabin not too far away and put this on. I'll take care of the rest."  
The plantgirl nodded and ran off while Tails continued to take the rest of all the things out. Two thermoses with cold orange juice, blue swimming trunks, sunblock…  
"Hey there, Tails!" – A familiar high-pitched voice sounded from behind Tails. The kitsune turned around and noticed that Cream and Vanilla had just walked over to him.  
"So, all alone on the beach today?" – Cream asked, looking rather curious.  
"Cream, please, don't be so intrusive on him!" – Vanilla said, pulling on to her daughter's hand. The younger rabbit sighed and pouted, while her mother said: "So, I heard about your friend having had returned a few weeks ago. Did she come along with you as well?"  
Just as Vanilla asked that question, Cosmo had exited the changing cabin, now wearing her green two-piece swimsuit. After giving the plantgirl a good look, Tails had noted that she really does look rather lovely in that swimsuit – it certainly accentuated her developing curves quite well. When Tails' stare trailed off a little lower, down to the plantgirl's feet, he had noticed that her feet were nothing like that of mobians – Cosmo's feet were those rather strange two-toed feet. Despite that, however, Tails still found the seedrian girl's feet rather…Cute? He never really had a thing for feet, but…  
"Earth to Tails. Earth to Tails. You've gotta spacing out, introduce your girlfriend to Vanilla, then run off to put those darn swimming trunks on." – The kitsune snapped himself out of the rather intrusive thoughts and said: "Yes. That's her. Her name is Cosmo."  
The plantgirl shyly waved her right hand to Vanilla while Tails ran off to change.  
"Well hello there, young lady! I take it you're not from around here, are you, Cosmo?" – The elder rabbit asked.  
"Well, yes. I used to live on a space colony most of my life. Together with possibly the last survivors of my kind. And unfortunately…I was the only one who survived out of all of them. It's a long and painful story." – Cosmo wasn't really happy mentioning some painful details of her past.  
"Alright, alright. I understand if you don't want to talk about it. According to what Cream told me, you have been to Mobius before. Is that correct?" – Vanilla asked.  
"Yes. About four years ago or so. You probably remember the crisis that happened back then." – The seedrian replied, bowing her head down.  
"We prefer not to mention it. So, why exactly you returned to Mobius and didn't prefer to stay on any other planets? I'm sure that in a galaxy as big as ours, there are plenty more planets to go by which are just as beautiful as Mobius." – The elder mobian just continued on with her questions.  
"It's…Quite a long story, really."  
And Cosmo told Vanilla everything. About the battles that she and the others had gone through, about the relationship that developed between her and Tails, about how they were seemingly separated once and for all, and how she was able to return. Cream knew the whole story already, so she was just busy minding her own business, though she did look rather uneasy for some reason.  
"I understand if my story sounds rather unbelievable, but…" – The plantgirl didn't get to finish her sentence, as Vanilla remarked: "Darling, I've heard and seen much stranger things throughout my life, so your story is fairly plausible. So, the main reason you returned was…?"  
Tails had already returned from the changing cabins, so Cosmo leaned on his shoulder and remarked: "Some relationships can endure even the most extreme circumstances." – As Cream looked at the two, she uttered a frustrated "Hmph!" and turned to face away from the couple.  
Tails just shyly scratched the back of his head before saying: "I know, it seems weird that I'm in love with an alien, but-"  
"No, no, no, dear, I didn't want to say any of that! In fact, I find the fact that you two love each other so much despite being so different and despite having been separated for four entire years rather…Interesting." – As Vanilla said that, Cream groaned in frustration.  
"You done now, mom? I certainly hope you do - I'm feeling sick of seeing these two together already, so I'll be off somewhere further away!" – And with that, the younger rabbit ran off, looking rather frustrated. Vanilla looked in the direction where her daughter ran off to and said: "Now that was rather strange of her. She is kind of not herself today, to be honest…" – Vanilla just sighed and changed the topic: "Well, I do hope that you and Tails will have quite a bit of fun on the beach. In the meantime, I've got to find out what's the matter with Cream." – And with that, Vanilla ran off looking for her daughter as Tails and Cosmo stayed behind, rather confused.  
"Whoa. What's up with Cream today?" – Tails asked.  
"I kind of get the feeling that it may have been our fault. We've gotten a bit too affectionate in front of her, don't you think?" – Cosmo replied, looking down in dismay.  
"I doubt that it would have caused such an adverse reaction from her." – Tails remarked, then in a few moments of silence, he realized something: "Although there may be a reason for that. You see, before your return, Cream and I were getting on more…Friendly terms with each other. Now don't get me wrong, I told you that I didn't actually find 'anyone else' during that time. In fact, I hardly even felt anything towards her. I kept telling myself "She will never replace Cosmo." And she was probably rather frustrated with the fact that our relationships stayed mostly static, and…I guess she tried to contain her frustration when you returned to the best of her abilities, but when you and I just went ahead and gotten a bit too up close and personal, that was probably the snapping point for her." – Tails sighed in dismay as he finished his explanation. – "I…I think I should go and apologize to her." – With that, Tails ran off, leaving Cosmo standing there with her thoughts.  
"So he really is **that** devoted to me, is he?" – The plantgirl thought, sitting down on the warm sand. – "Even when he had a chance to start a new relationship with someone else… He declined it in favor of the small hope that I would return someday. If that isn't devotion, I don't know what is. But that's…Quite self-destructive of him. Oh, I wish I could have warned him back then that I would return. Maybe then his life wouldn't have been such a mess during the time when I was absent from the mortal world…"

* * *

"Alright, sweetie. Just tell me – what was that all about?"  
Vanilla and Cream were currently discussing the latter's sudden outburst, standing further away from the other people visiting the beach.  
"Cream, answer the question. What happened? What was that outburst all about?" – Vanilla asked in a rather stern voice.  
"Mom, I can handle this on my own, just leave this matter to me, Tails, and Cosmo." – Cream replied in a noticeably frustrated voice.  
"I can definitely see that it's not the case." – Vanilla's voice softened slightly. – "There is nothing embarrassing about asking me for help in such situations. You're not even in your early teens yet."  
"Mom, my age has nothing to do with this matter, alright? Just leave me to handle my own problems myself." – The younger rabbit replied in the same exasperated voice.  
"At least tell me what the problem is. What makes you think I can't give you any relationship advice?"  
Cream paused for a moment. Vanilla sighed and continued: "Seems like I was able to guess the nature of the problem."  
The younger rabbit replied: "Alright. I…I was feeling kind of jealous about Tails. When I saw him and Cosmo getting all up close and personal with each other…"  
Vanilla didn't let her daughter finish the sentence and asked: "But you didn't seem to be feeling anything for Tails before now. What changed?"  
"That's the keyword, mom – before. I know, I'm too young to be in love with anyone, but…I kind of began feeling that way towards Tails fairly recently. Ever since we kind of began getting on more friendly terms three years after Cosmo's…Supposed death." – Cream paused for a moment, taking a deep breath. – "Or, to make it clearer – a year or so ago."

* * *

(Flashback, 1 year ago.)  
Tails was quietly sitting in his modest workshop, fiddling with some small mechanism when he heard a series of rapid knocks on the door leading outside the conjoined building that was the kitsune's workshop and his house built next to each other.  
"Sure, sure, you can come in, work hasn't been going too well anyway, dang it to Chaos…" – Tails said in a rather frustrated voice, to which an all-too-familiar little rabbit entered his workshop.  
"Hi Tails. I thought I might as well check on you or something. Ever since we had travelled to that weird dimension, you have been acting…Grim." – Cream's voice was a little quieter on the last part of the sentence. The dimension that the little girl was referring to was none other than The Twilight Cage – after leaving that place, Tails was somehow left even worse off than before in terms of mental health. Even though Cream herself still had nightmares about the place, it didn't affect her as much as it did Tails. What exactly made the young fox's state even worse off than before – no one really knew. The kitsune sighed and replied: "It's hard to act cheerful three years after-"  
"The death of your loved one, yes, you said that quite a few times already." – Cream replied, interrupting the kitsune's speech. At first the young fox wanted to tell Cream not to interrupt him, but just sighed and instead said: "Sorry that I've been being a bit of a broken record recently. In fact, I even feel like one. You know, how a record that previously played a nice, cheerful melody gets broken or scratched and begins playing a complete cacophony that is a shadow of its former song?"  
Cream didn't even know what to say, looking down and trying to avoid eye contact with Tails. After a brief awkward silence, the kitsune said: "Look, I know what you're going to say. That I have to move on from what had happened, that I must forget about it and put it behind me as nothing more than just a part of my past that is better off forgotten…But I just cannot."  
"I…Wasn't going to say any of that." – Cream replied in a shy, suppressed voice. Then, after a brief pause, she spoke up a bit louder: "But now that you mentioned it, I think what your friends said may be right – there's no point crying over what has already been gone and done, don't you think?"  
Tails sighed and put his instruments down and slowly turned to face Cream. After he saw that the young girl was looking him in the eyes, he replied: "Cream. Answer me a simple question, with a simple one-word answer – just a "yes" or a "no". You think I haven't been trying to forget about the incident? You think I haven't tried to just move on with my life as usual? You think I really am such a masochist?"  
The young rabbit was outright dumbfounded by Tails' words. Partially because she had a hard time understanding a few particular terms, partially because she didn't really know what to say.  
"I…Don't even know." – The little girl replied, sighing. Tails shook his head in dismay and spoke up: "When Cosmo had disappeared, I felt…I felt like the world just lost any and all color. Metaphorically speaking, of course, but still… I felt like all the good things in life were just dull and meaningless, and all the bad things became even worse. I felt like I could not love anyone anymore, like I would not be capable of ever smiling sincerely." – The kitsune chuckled nervously. – "Of course you wouldn't understand. Not at your age, that is for sure."  
"I…I'll just take my leave now, I guess." – Cream said, going to exit the workshop. Just moments before the young rabbit reached the door, she turned around and asked: "Wait, why are you confessing that to me of all people? Wouldn't others be able to understand it better?"  
"To be completely honest? I have no idea." – Tails replied. – "Maybe I just felt like talking to someone who is a bit closer to my age. Maybe because you're actually a good listener. Either way, discussing this subject with you feels a lot better than discussing it with, say, Sonic or Knuckles. So, if anything…You're always welcome to visit me every now and then."  
Cream smiled and replied: "Thank you, Tails." – And with that said, the rabbit left Tails' humble workshop as the young kitsune sighed and went back to fiddling with the small device he was working on.  
(End of flashback)

* * *

"Eventually, as I continued visiting Tails, I kind of…Began to "like-like" him. I don't know if he felt the same towards me before Cosmo's return, but…It was unknown to both of us whether Cosmo would even return or not. I had assumed that Tails might want to move on from the whole incident that separated him and Cosmo, and I thought I would be the one to help him with that. " – Cream said as she finished telling her story.  
"Well, darling, I'm not going to sugarcoat it for you – he doesn't feel the same way as you do towards him. But that's not to say you two can't still be friends, right?" – Vanilla asked.  
"Mom, I feel like such a failure." – Cream remarked, avoiding the older rabbit's question. Vanilla asked back confusedly: "Why?"  
"I thought I would be that 'shoulder to lean on' for Tails during the time of Cosmo's absence. But now I realize that it was so silly of me to think that I would ever replace her." – The little girl sighed as she finished speaking. After a brief pause, she added: "I'm sure he doesn't even want to be around me anymore now that Cosmo has returned."  
"Now, Cream, you know that's not true. He still wants you to be around – just as a friend. True, the person towards who you might have felt actual love may not accept your feelings, but that doesn't necessarily mean it's the end of the world. If you do love a person, let them go. If they don't come back, then maybe they really didn't feel the same towards you."  
"I get it now. I'm terribly sorry about that outburst I threw when I saw them together. I…I was having some difficulties containing my emotions there. " – Cream said, looking down in shame. Vanilla knelt down to the younger rabbit and replied: "I do appreciate that you understood your error, but it's not me you should be apologizing to. Tails might be around here any moment now – go talk to him and discuss this further." – Vanilla suggested, to which Cream nodded quietly and looked around to see if Tails was anywhere nearby. Luckily, the kitsune was already heading towards the two rabbits. Cream ran over to Tails and…Well, it went to that usual "two people want to apologize at once" situation, with them both starting the conversation with "Tails/Cream, I'm sorry about what happened, I-"  
"Wait, I'll just say it first." – Cream said, interrupting Tails. She took a deep breath and replied: "Look, I'm sorry for getting a bit ill-tempered with you two around. I kind of…Let my feelings get the best of me."  
"No, you're not the one who should be apologizing. I really shouldn't have gone full-on lovey-dovey with Cosmo. I…I am an idiot." – Tails remarked, looking to the side.  
"Heh. Guess we both screwed up here, didn't we? So, peace?" – Cream asked, pointing her open hand forward. Tails smiled and shook the little girl's hand slightly, saying: "Peace."  
With that, the two went in different directions – Tails went back to where Cosmo was waiting, and Cream went back to her mother.  
"So?" – Cosmo asked, looking a bit nervous.  
"We had the conflict resolved." – Tails replied. – "I guess Cream and I will still be on friendly terms from now on – it's just that we won't be as close as before. So I suppose, now that we have a crystal clear conscience, it's only fair that we get to have some fun on the beach."  
The plantgirl smiled in response and replied: "Well, I actually wanted to learn to swim properly. Care to teach me to swim?"  
"I'd be more than happy to."  
And with that, the couple ran off into the water. Cosmo was at first hesitant in taking the first few steps into the water, but soon gotten used to it. Tails smiled and followed her in.  
"The trick is to move the right way. Move too quickly – you'll likely overexert yourself and get tired. Move too slowly – you'll hardly even move from where you're floating. Let me show you how it's done." – Tails demonstrated how to do it, and then continued, swimming in place: "Now you go for it."  
The plantgirl nodded and tried to take a step forward…Only to sink in completely before she could even react. Tails barely managed to pull her out of the water and remarked: "I guess that spot was deeper than expected. Even in the water, one's still got to watch their step. "  
Just now, the kitsune noticed the way he was holding his girlfriend – right by her waist, to be specific. "Wow, her skin really is a smooth as I thought it would be." – Tails thought, and even ran his right hand across Cosmo's waist for a tiny bit. The seedrian blushed and asked: "Um…Is this part of the swimming training?" which resulted in Tails snapping out of it and saying: "Oh…I just got a little carried away. Anyway, did you get what to do now? Try swimming for a bit."  
Cosmo nodded again and swam back and forth for a bit while Tails had a brief moment alone with his thoughts.  
"Steady on, Miles. You wouldn't want to make such advances on her so quickly, would you? You would probably end up…Alienating her, for a lack of better word." – As Tails finished that thought, Cosmo swam back next to him and asked: "So, was that good enough?"  
"Just fine. Let's continue practicing for now."

* * *

The swimming practice went on for quite a while – Cosmo turned out to be a fairly quick learner, and soon was swimming almost as good as Tails was. After the two had gotten out of water, noticeably exhausted, and sat down on the beach towel they had placed down, they took some time to catch their breath before Tails asked: "You know, for a plant creature, you are pretty good at swimming. Were you learning it before?"  
"Not really. I guess you're just a good teacher. It does take quite a bit of time to get the movements right, and even now I'm not sure if I was swimming the right way." – The seedrian replied, her hair still dripping with sea water – she flipped over by accident quite a few times.  
"I suppose we should just call it a day and head home. I'm sure you're just as exhausted as I am." – Tails remarked, placing his hand on his girlfriend's shoulder. The seedrian smiled and leaned forward towards Tails, rubbing her cheek against his, and soon enough, the two went to get their clothes back on.  
After all the preparations for going back home, the two said their goodbyes to the others who decided to stick around on the beach for a bit and left for the train station. Soon enough, as the two boarded a train back to Mystic Ruins, Cosmo decided to take a quick nap until they've arrived back, and ended up lying down on the bench, placing her head on Tails' lap sideways. The kitsune was visibly dozing off at the moment, so he didn't really notice Cosmo leaning in. When he did feel her head pressing against his lap, he was slightly shocked at first, but then just smiled and started to caress the plantgirl's leafy hair, trying to avoid the partially-opened rosebuds on the sides of her head, as he thought they may be sensitive. Not that he was missing out much – the seedrian's hair felt surprisingly silky and soft. A random wolf-mobian passed by the two, and gave them a rather accusative look, to which Tails retorted angrily: "Hey, the girl's had a pretty busy day and wanted to take a nap."  
"I'm not saying anything, continue with whatever you were doing…" – The mobian remarked as he walked away, then, when he presumed that he was far enough to be out of their hearing range, continued: "You filthy xenophile…"  
Tails pretended not to hear that, while Cosmo, being already half-asleep, didn't pay all that much attention to it, as the couple's ride back home continued.


	9. Chapter 8 - Relationships and Desires

_Yes, well...This particular chapter might have some...Suggestive moments here and there, so if you don't really like that kind of stuff...Eh, you won't miss much by not reading this chapter.  
But I have no intent on making this a typical Taismo romance fic that has the occasional lemons. Actually, I opted for **no lemons.** Perhaps at a certain point, I might get around to writing a series of lemon one-shots taking place within this fanfic's continuity. **Maybe.  
** Once again, if anyone seems a bit too OOC, there is likely to be a justification here somewhere. So...Yeah. Enjoy it. I promise, the next chapter will likely be a bit more significant that this one. _

* * *

(A few days before current events, Gaia's Realm)  
Lucas stood in front of what appeared to be a large lake. However, even though the lake's water was as clear as a crystal, it did not at all show the seedrian's reflection. The lake was not meant to reflect the one looking at it, but rather, what the onlooker wanted to see in the mortal world. Right now, Lucas was watching over his daughter, Cosmo, as she was quietly sitting under a tree. However, the plantgirl was not alone – sitting next to her was an orange-furred two-tailed fox.  
What was the kitsune's name again? Lucas hardly remembered anything about him, probably because the only time the two met in the mortal world was when Lucas was still known as Dark Oak, and the two were mortal enemies back then. But that didn't matter to the seedrian – right now, he had other concerns besides knowing the name of the person that his daughter fell for.  
"Are you stalking Cosmo again, Lucas?" – A sweet, but rather serious voice rang from behind Lucas. The purple seedrian turned around and saw Hertia standing behind him and giving him an accusative look.  
"Hertia, my precious, you know all too well how worried I am about our daughter." – With that, the purple seedrian resumed looking at the sort-of-lake. Hertia sighed and walked over next to her husband, as she herself looked at the lake.  
"Well, there's nothing to be worried about. She seems perfectly happy." – As if emphasizing the blue-haired plantgirl's point, Cosmo and Tails quietly held each other in an embrace, seemingly falling asleep in the shade of the tree.  
"Sure, right now, it all seems perfectly fine, but…I'm more worried about her future rather than her present."  
"Lucas, please, it's far too early to be worried about that, is it not? Gaia promised that Cosmo's firstborn child will be a pure-blooded seedrian, and so will be all the firstborns further down the family line, as well as having the ability to procreate with living beings not of their kind. So if I were you, I wouldn't be worried about the future of our kind so much." – Hertia replied in her usual sweet but serious voice. Lucas sighed and remarked: "It's not about the future of our **kind** , Hertia. It's about the future of **Cosmo** specifically that I'm worried about."  
"She is much more mature than you give her credit for. I suggest that you leave her alone for now. I doubt there's anything to be worried about." – And with that, Hertia went silent, waiting for Lucas' answer. The purple seedrian replied in a rather exasperated tone: "Since when did you become so optimistic, woman?"  
"Since the moment our daughter was given a second chance, of course. Now, I think we have some other matters to attend to, do we not?" - With that, Hertia walked away from the "lake". Lucas sighed and followed his wife as the "picture" in the lake changed back to a normal reflection.

* * *

(Present day, the mortal world)  
Of all possible ways to get woken up, never had Tails assumed that on this particular morning, he would wake up to the feeling of Cosmo lying on top of him. When the kitsune opened his eyes and saw his girlfriend's beautiful face so up close, he groggily replied: "Oh. Good morning. What's with the sudden display of affection?"  
The plantgirl blushed and replied: "Well, I didn't get to spend much time with you yesterday, since you seemed to be quite busy with your latest work, so I figured that today, I might as well make up for the lack of attention."  
"That is…Not really necessary, but still quite welcome nonetheless." – The fox blushed as he said that. In the meantime, Cosmo got off of Tails and stood up from the bed, running off for a few moments. When the seedrian came back, she was holding a tray with two cups of coffee.  
"Thanks for the coffee." – Tails replied as he sat up and took one of the cups of coffee as Cosmo also sat down next to him, taking the other cup. As the two quietly drank their coffee, Tails remarked: "You know, after a bit of overtime work yesterday, the coffee really helps."  
"Eh, it's no problem. I do have one question – what exactly you were working on for the past few days? You didn't seem to be tinkering around with your plane or any weird mechanisms." – After saying that, Cosmo took another sip of her coffee.  
"Eh, just been repairing some random citizens' kitchen appliances for money. During peaceful times, when you don't really get to find any rings or valuables randomly lying around, you've still got to make a living somehow." – Feeling his hands getting a bit tired from holding a cup full of hot coffee, the kitsune placed it down on the bedside table.  
"Heh. I guess it's quite great to be a mechanic – you've always got some work on your hands, and you can get paid for repairs that seem like child's play compared to what you usually work with." – Another sip, another brief pause.  
"And the best part about it is that it's sometimes only too amusing to try to find out the cause of the appliance breaking. Several of the microwaves I had to repair were usually broken by their owners deciding to stick in a metal object just for laughs, or just left a random spoon in there by carelessness." – Tails remarked. Cosmo laughed at the kitsune's remark, and only had one word to say: "Curiosity."  
After that, the two went silent for a few more moments, before Cosmo blushed and asked: "So… What plans do you have for the future?"  
"Oh…Well…" – Tails wasn't exactly sure what to tell her. Some awkward silence later, the fox barely managed to reply: "Guess I'll just be doing my usual business while it's still profitable, I guess."  
"I see…" – Cosmo was a little disappointed with her boyfriend's answer, so she went a bit more specific: "…If we were to have a daughter, do you think her hair would be green like my hair, or orange like your fur?"  
Tails choked on his coffee as he heard Cosmo's question. Taking some time to normalize his breath, the mobian replied: "Cosmo, don't you think it's a bit too early to be thinking about such things?"  
"Oh…I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make you feel uncomfortable!" – The plantgirl hurriedly apologized. Tails placed his coffee cup to the side and grabbed on to the plantgirl's shoulders, saying: "Cosmo, please, don't worry about that. I'm perfectly fine with your question. It's just that I think it's a bit too early for us to be worried about such things. Heck, we're not even close to the minimum marriage age just yet."  
"Oh…Well, from what I heard, the minimum marriage age on Greengate is actually about twelve years – as that's usually the time when a seedrian female begins to properly develop physically and becomes ready to have children. So, I assumed that it was actually the right time to be inquiring about such things." – The plantgirl looked down into her half-empty coffee cup, sighed and took yet another sip. As for Tails, he continued: "Well, it doesn't really work like this on Mobius. The "legal" age for marriage around here is actually eighteen years. The absolute minimum I heard about was fourteen, but even then, it was some rather specific case. In other words, we really are far too young to be thinking about such things just yet. And besides, even counting the time we spent together on the Blue Typhoon, we still hardly know each other for half a year."  
Cosmo sighed and continued on to drinking her coffee. After a few moments of relative silence between the two, Tails was the first one to speak up: "But…Considering the things we went through…I think we stopped being kids way earlier than we think we did."  
Cosmo jolted upright by a bit before asking: "What do you mean, Tails?"  
"What do I mean?" – Tails chuckled, and then continued in a somewhat sorrowful voice: "What I mean to say is, we may still be kids physically, but mentally, we stopped being kids way back then, after we were thrust right into the middle of an interstellar war."  
Cosmo didn't even know what to say, so, letting Tails continue on with his trail of thought, she responded with a heavy, sorrowful sigh. However, seeing that Tails had nothing else to say himself, she replied: "To be honest… I kind of felt like our relationship was just about the only thing that remained relatively "innocent" during that time. On the off chance that we were alone together, not involved in anything related to that war, I felt like we were actually like perfectly ordinary kids for our age – just hanging out with each other and having fun, not a care in the world." – Cosmo remembered how she and Tails were preparing a surprise party for the rest of the Blue Typhoon's crew. – "And yet now…I feel like even our relationship is not so innocent anymore. After all, "those" feelings begin to slowly but steadily set in, and we are powerless to do anything about it."  
"I thought seedrians feel no such…Desires?" – Tails immediately ducked off to the side, as if expecting Cosmo to punch him or something for such a question. To the kitsune's relief, the plantgirl just smiled and replied: "I suppose that may be a common misconception. I doubt I would have any of those desires if I was physically incapable of it, though. So my guess is that other seedrians may not have been above it after all."  
"Well…You know, Cosmo, now that I think deeper into it…It feels like our attraction to each other may be against the laws of nature in itself." – The kitsune immediately corrected himself: "Not that I think that our relationship is bad or anything! If anything, I'm only too happy to-"  
The plantgirl giggled and replied: "Perhaps we are so attracted to each other because we have so much in common, don't we? Despite the fact that we're so drastically different physically, we're still pretty much kindred spirits. And because of that, our relationship is based not on desire, but on trust and faith. At least that's how I think it is."  
"That…Actually does make a lot of sense. But still, what do we do about-" – Tails didn't get to finish his question, as Cosmo put her index finger on his lips and said: "Tails, I suggest we'll try to not discuss this matter any further until we're of legal age. I can clearly see how uncomfortable you are about it, so let's try not to dig ourselves too deep, shall we?"  
The kitsune nodded in response, to which the seedrian smiled and replied: "I suggest we head out into the forest and take a short refreshing walk, so that we both feel a bit more clear-headed."  
"Actually…I had an idea for a different place to visit. It's not too far away, and I'm sure you probably saw it a few times on the way to the Mystic Forest. But I'd like you to bring your swimsuit over there. I'll get my swimming trunks as well."  
"Oh…Are you talking about that small lake beneath one of the smaller cliffs on the way to Mystic Forest? Well…I do hope the water there isn't too cold. Just give me some time to get the necessary things." – With that, Cosmo went to check through her clothes drawer, while Tails didn't need that much preparation – he just took his usual pair of swimming trunks. And with that, the two had headed out of their house, at first going by the same route as the one to the forest, but then taking a detour off to the side. Soon enough, the couple had arrived to the place that Cosmo mentioned – a moderately-sized lake situated beneath a cliff.  
"Okay, if anything, you can go change your clothes just behind that particular rock – I do think it should obscure just enough." – Tails remarked, pointing at a particular rock near the lake's shore.  
"Come on, Tails, I trust you enough, and I know you won't peek." – After hearing that from Cosmo, the kitsune remarked: "I don't really know… You know, I am rather surprised at how you're acting today. You sure that it's not your hormones deciding for you?"  
The plantgirl laughed at her boyfriend's remark and gave him a light nudge on the shoulder, exclaiming: "Tails!" After calming down, however, she replied: "Okay, I'll go behind the rock then."  
In the meantime, Tails waited at the shoreline, trying to get some form of distraction from what was going on. Except there wasn't a soul other than them around this place – not even any flickies wanted to go anywhere near the cold lake. Leaning on his knees and sighing, the kitsune later asked: "Cos, are you done?"  
"Hold on, I'm not sure where I should leave my clothes…"  
"Just leave them on the ground. If they get dirty, we'll wash them off later." – And with that said, after a few more moments, Cosmo approached Tails from behind and replied: "So, should we take the slow and steady approach, or you want to dive right in?" – The plantgirl then realized that her words kind of came out wrong, and corrected herself: "I mean, will we just slowly go into the water, or just cannonball right in?"  
"Well…I guess we may have some fun and opt for diving?" – The kitsune replied, standing up.  
"Okay, then you go first, so that I know the water's alright. Of course, if you're not comfortable with going first…" – Cosmo didn't get to finish her sentence, as Tails remarked: "Actually, I was just about to ask if you wanted to go first, as I…Kind of wanted to dive in first myself…Right. In any case…" – Tails stood up, took a few steps back to get a running start, and just moments before it, remarked: "You might want to stand back though."  
And with that, after running and jumping, Tails used his namesakes to gain some height, and when he felt like he was at just the right altitude, dove right down. The resulting splash was enough to leave a few drops on Cosmo's skin and swimsuit. A few moments later, Tails resurfaced, shivering slightly, and remarked: "The wa-water's g-g-great! You c-c-can go right in!"  
"Uh… Well, I don't really have any ways of getting any extra height, so…Eeeeep!" – The plantgirl ran forward, closing her eyes and, as soon as she felt that she stepped into a bit of water, jumped forward. While the resulting splash wasn't as big, there were still a few extra drops that got on Tails' fur.  
"Nice one for a beginner, I guess." – Tails seemingly got used to the cold water and didn't shiver anymore. And in the next few moments, Cosmo resurfaced in such a way that her hair even sort of flew up a bit, scattering drops of water, and afterwards, the plantgirl reached with her hands to rearrange her hair. Seeing Cosmo chest-deep in water like this made Tails feel a little uneasy, but he still blurted out: "You…Look really gorgeous in that swimsuit, Cosmo."  
"Oh…You didn't tell me that earlier on the beach." – The plantgirl remarked, looking a bit confused.  
"I was just a bit too shy to say it back then. But considering we are all alone here, I decided I might as well go for it since I was given the opportunity to." – The kitsune swam a little closer to the plantgirl. Just when he was about a few inches before her, he quietly asked: "Is…This too close for comfort?"  
"No-no-no, it's…It's alright. It does feel a little weird to be getting so up close and personal with you, but…It's okay." – After Cosmo said that, both she and Tails looked a bit off to the side, blushing.  
"We won't take it any further than a kiss, right?" – The kitsune asked, sounding a little nervous, to which his seedrian girlfriend nodded and answered, a bit uneasy: "Right…"  
The two leaned forward just enough, and then kissed each other on the lips. The kiss almost immediately went from the typical "shy" type of kiss to a more typical French kiss. As the two continued kissing, Tails' hands had slipped a little lower from Cosmo's shoulders. The plantgirl pretended to not notice this, but the moment her foxy boyfriend's hand slid all the way down to her bottom…  
"No, Cosmo, tough it out. He promised not to take it too far. You trust him to fulfill that promise, right?" – It was unclear just where this could have went had Tails not opened his eyes and looked a little lower. The moment he noticed just where his right hand was, he immediately moved his hands off of Cosmo's body and pushed her away slightly. After taking a breather, the kitsune guiltily said: "Sorry, Cosmo…You were just too tempting, and…"  
"Tails, don't worry about it. You kept your promise, right?"  
"Only because I realized what I was doing. Chances are that if I didn't pay attention to what I was doing… Ugh, nevermind." – And after Tails said that, there was an awkward silence, only broken by the sounds of water and the occasional birds in the distance. A few moments after, Cosmo was the first one to speak up: "Did you say I was…Tempting?"  
"Well… Maybe?" – The kitsune's muzzle was almost beet-red from the ensuing conversation. – "Look, if that's not the kind of compliment you wanted to hear, then-"  
"No-no-no, it's…it's fine. I just…Didn't expect something like that from you." – The plantgirl remarked, blushing almost as much as Tails – her cheeks were almost the same color as her buds.

The way home went by in even more awkward silence. Tails hardly said anything to Cosmo, looking rather guilty and ashamed of himself, while Cosmo herself was a little worried about the way Tails was acting. After the two went upstairs and into Tails' bedroom, the bedroom's owner was the first one to speak up: "Look, Cosmo, I'm terribly sorry about-" – but of course he didn't get to finish his sentence, as Cosmo placed her index finger on his lips and replied: "Tails. Just don't. Let's not bring this matter up for now. I can clearly see you're too uncomfortable with such things right now, so we better not push it any further."  
"If that's how you want it, I guess…" – The kitsune replied in a somewhat uneasy tone. As Cosmo decided to go downstairs, she stopped in the doorway for a moment, then turned to face Tails, looking a bit lower down than usual.  
"Oh, and…" – Cosmo barely managed not to snicker. – "You might want to start actually wearing pants from now on. I can clearly see you have trouble keeping your 'feelings' to yourself."


	10. Chapter 9 - Trust and Bonds

_Yes, well...This chapter feels more like a filler than anything. And yes, it also has some...Questionable implications near the end. I really am stretching the limits of the T-rating, am I? Don't worry, the next chapter's going to be back to the usual "daily life events" format, probably taking place in winter (How ironic, as by the time I wrote this chapter, it was already end of spring...) Also, this chapter was the biggest pain in the arsch to write. Mostly because I wrote several full chapters and then discarded them because I either didn't like the idea, they were too poorly written, or both things at once. And yes, I'm not happy with this chapter as well.  
Before anyone says I'm baiting for compliments - no. I'm just saying that chapters like this one aren't exactly done to the best of my abilities. After my exam preparation and the exams themselves are over, maybe then I'll focus more on writing and get to writing better chapters. And I promise I'll try to avoid fillers.  
_

* * *

It was a fairly ordinary summer evening. Tails was just minding his own business for the remainder of the evening after dinner, when suddenly, he heard Cosmo reciting something over at her room. The kitsune got curious, and decided to check up on his seedrian girlfriend. As soon as he approached the door, the words that Cosmo was reciting became clearer: "…The firstborn are the rulers of many. In dire times, the many have the power. But the power of many cost them their lives. So the power was sealed and only meant to be used in times of disaster. "  
A few quiet, but quick knocks quickly caught the seedrian's attention, as she stopped reciting and turned around, saying: "Oh, hey there, Tails."  
"Good evening. What was that strange chant you were reciting?" – The kitsune asked, rather curious.  
"It's a certain chant my sister taught me. It seems to be some sort of abridged version of the mythos of Gaia and the origins of seedrians." – Cosmo responded, then was about to get back to reading it, but turned back to face Tails and replied: "You…You wouldn't mind if I read it from the beginning? You kind of interrupted me, so..."  
"Of course I wouldn't. I am actually rather curious about parts of the seedrian culture…" – The kitsune then added in a somewhat less enthusiastic voice: "Or at least the remnants of it."  
"In any case, the chant goes like this:  
 _In the beginning of our homeworld, there were The Predecessors  
One of the Predecessors was The One  
The One was the first Child of Nature to exist, named Gaia  
The One could talk to those who would not respond to anyone else  
For they were kindred spirits by their nature and soul  
However, the Predecessors were immobile, not counting Gaia herself  
So One became Many  
The Many are the Seedrians, Children of Nature  
Amongst the Many, there were the Firstborn, direct descendants of Gaia  
The Firstborn are the rulers of Many  
In dire times, the Many have The Power  
But the Power of Many cost them their lives  
So The Power was sealed  
And only meant to be used in times of Disaster  
The Power is of two different natures  
One of them is pure power and raw strength  
Which would cost the one using it their Life  
The other is ability to give life and stop destruction  
But for that, one has to give up their Body.  
The Power shall bring forth dark times if misused  
The Many must be ever so mindful of it  
Else the Many are doomed."  
_As Cosmo finished the chant, Tails tried to piece together what he just heard. The part about the power, he could understand that – it was referring to the male seedrians' beast form abilities and the females' ability to transform into trees. And the part about misusing the power was loud and clear, too. But the beginning part was a little hard to understand. Cosmo noticed the somewhat dumbfounded look on Tails' face, so she replied: "Long story short, apparently, Gaia was the first seedrian ever. And it was from her that the other seedrians have gained the ability to communicate to plants – after all, it turns out that plants are as sentient as animals, they just don't display it outright."  
"Huh. The more you know…" – Tails remarked, to which Cosmo giggled and responded: "Now that I remember it…Early teachings of Gaians never taught us anything about animal races. In most interpretations, all that was told about them is that they were just…Different. Not imperfect, not evil, just…Different. With different lifestyles, different customs and traditions… From what I could recall, not every seedrian on the colony ship was a war refugee. And there were a select few who thought that not all animals are so awful – mostly the old seedrians that had actually lived before the war of Greengate. Alas, most seedrians I knew followed the teaching that animals and plants are just never meant to be in harmony, for they are too different." – Cosmo paused for a moment, then added: "You know what I think of these teachings now?"  
Tails didn't respond, letting Cosmo continue. The seedrian smirked, and remarked: "I think the teachings about plants and animals being unable to live in harmony are a bunch of nonsense. And you know what else I think? We may be just a single case, but we are living proof that the peaceful coexistence of plants and animals is not impossible." – With that said, Cosmo hugged Tails tightly. The kitsune hugged back and quietly replied: "Indeed we are, Cosmo-chan. Indeed we are."  
"Wait, "-chan"?" – Cosmo wasn't too familiar with honorifics. Tails blushed and remarked: "That kind of slipped out. "-chan" is an honorific used in one of the languages of Eastern Mobius, commonly used between lovers referring to each other. "  
"I never thought that the inhabitants of the same planet would speak in different languages..." - Cosmo replied, seeming a bit intrigued. Tails didn't know what to say on this, and just smiled, gazing into each other's eyes silently. The silence lasted for a few more moments before Tails leaned forward and kissed his seedrian girlfriend on the lips. After holding on for long enough and subsequently breaking the kiss to catch her breath, Cosmo remarked: "Do you plan on kissing me every day?"  
"If you want to, I can." – Tails replied, missing the point due to being a bit dazed after the kiss. The plantgirl giggled and said: "Tails, what I meant to say is, you don't have to shower me with kisses and hugs every day to prove me how much you love me. All that you've done for me so far is already more than enough. Besides, all that display of affection is making me feel overwhelmed. I don't deserve that much of it."  
"Oh…Okay." – Tails replied in a somewhat disappointed tone. – "I'm glad that you appreciate what I'm doing for you anyway. It's just that…I'm kind of awkward with relationships."  
"Tails, you don't have to worry about that. You have a good sense of right and wrong, and on some things that may not exactly seem obvious at first – don't worry. I won't laugh at you or get angry if you were to do something wrong. I'll just explain what's wrong and tell you what to do in that kind of situation." – The plantgirl wanted to hug Tails again, but remembering her previous statement, backed out of it. – "You know, I think while we were talking here, it's already gotten quite late, don't you think? How about we both take a shower and get back to our bed?"  
"Yeah, I'm kind of feeling that-" – Tails suddenly froze up at the realization of a tiny little detail in what Cosmo said. – "Wait…"Bed"? As in, you want to sleep in the same bed with me again?"  
"If you're still feeling uncomfortable about it because of some…Difficulties, then I understand." – The plantgirl replied in a somewhat concerned voice, to which the kitsune answered: "Naw, I've kind of gotten over that. Now if you'll excuse me, I'll head over to the shower."  
Cosmo nodded and Tails left the room. In the remaining time, the plantgirl was just quietly lying on the bed, left with her own thoughts.  
"Heh. Smart, cute, brave, and can be romantic when he wants to. And living with him isn't half bad, either – at least his house is a lot more comfortable than the cramped-up room I had to share with Galaxina back on Space Colony Dandelion… And he is so thoughtful, too. Sure, he can go overboard with his feelings at times, but I know he means well – he's just not experienced with this, as much as I am. He loves me as much as I love him, and we both know that. Now I know why I fell for him. " – The seedrian then sighed and remarked out loud: "If only we could get married someday…"  
Of course, of all times to remark this, it had to be when Tails was opening the door – the kitsune wasn't the type of person to take overly long showers, just enough to clean up a bit. The plantgirl immediately yelped and covered her mouth, realizing that Tails might have heard her. Luckily, Tails' reply implied that he didn't hear what she said: "Oh, you were reciting that prayer again? Sorry I interrupted."  
In her mind, Cosmo let out a sigh of relief, while what she said was: "Oh, it's really nothing. I…I guess I'll go take my turn in the shower as well …" – And with a nervous smile on her face, the girl exited the bedroom, while her foxy boyfriend lied down on the bed, waiting for the plantgirl. Several minutes had passed – the water was still running, and Cosmo wasn't coming over to the bedroom anytime soon. Normally, by this point, Cosmo would be already done showering and would come back over to the bedroom. But right now, she was taking a bit too long.  
"Okay, this time she is taking a bit too long…" – Tails was already beginning to wonder just what Cosmo was doing in the shower for so long. Deciding not to disturb her privacy, however, the kitsune decided to just continue lying there, letting his mind wander.  
"Maybe I can get used to living with her. I mean, she is pretty much perfect in every way – she is beautiful, kind, cute, thoughtful… Sure, she can be a little shy or cowardly from time to time, but that's just part of her personality, and it is kind of endearing at times. And it's not like there are problems in the practical side, too – I've got to admit, I began to really enjoy her cooking lately, and she keeps the house so neat and tidy, too… Of course I'd have to ask her to loosen up on this by a bit – I don't want to treat her as a filthy housewife. Well…" – The mobian glanced over to the framed photo on the wall – just a few days ago, he had borrowed Amy's camera to take a photo of him and Cosmo. The two were standing not too far away from the cliff where Tails' house stood, so aside from the view on the two lovers holding each other's hands and looking into the camera, there was also a really nice seaside view. Tails sighed and remarked: "She would definitely make for a good wife. But I have to wait with this."  
"Wait with what?" – Oh, the irony. Cosmo had just finished showering, and had already come back to the bedroom. Tails looked back and said, stuttering: "Oh! H-hey Cosmo! How l-long you were h-here?"  
"Not for much. I came back from the shower, opened the door, and then heard you saying that you have to wait with something. What is it?" – The seedrian asked, a little curious.  
"Well…" – The kitsune sighed. He couldn't hide it any longer. – "I was wondering about our relationships."  
"Oh…Is something wrong, Tails?"  
The fox immediately corrected himself and replied: "No, I don't mean that there is anything wrong with it! What I meant to say is…With the recent events, do you really think we would successfully be able to bide our time until we can take our relationships…Further?"  
The plantgirl sighed in realization of just what Tails meant, then replied: "Well, you yourself said that we have to wait until we are of legal age, right? And you do seem rather uncomfortable with discussing some subjects further. Although, truth be told…" – Cosmo immediately blushed at what she was about to say, so she gestured Tails to come closer, so that she could whisper it to him. When the kitsune was close enough… _Well, I'm sure most readers might understand the implications, but I cannot explicitly write anything here – I have to keep this T-rated, you know._ _All I have to say is_ , Tails' response was this: "So that's why you took so long in the shower. And how often were you doing that?"  
"...At least once a day." – The plantgirl's cheeks were pretty much as red as the rosebuds adorning the sides of her head. - "How come you never done...That?"  
"And here I thought we agreed not to speak of this until we're legal…" – Tails remarked, sighing. – "I just try to get my mind off of it, that's all. When you want to get your mind off of something - find a distraction. In my case, the distraction was working on the mechanisms, and it proved to be practical, too. Is there any distraction you think would be right for you?"  
"Oh…Well, I can somewhat stay concentrated during housework…But hey, even that runs out eventually. So it's not really an option." – Cosmo replied, looking down. After a few moments, Tails asked: "Well, didn't you use to enjoy gardening a whole lot? Why won't you go back to that?"  
"Now that you reminded me…" – The plantgirl pondered over for a bit before continuing: "I was doing a lot of gardening with my sister back on board of Space Colony Dandelion. On the off chance that she was free from work at the infirmary, we would often go to the "green" deck and take care of the plants there. And now that I think of it…" – The seedrian stood up from the bed and looked out the bedroom window – even though it was quite dark already, one could easily see that the small patch of ground just behind the house was free of any plants, but not completely barren. That's when the plantgirl had an idea: "Maybe it's about time to get an expansion done for this house? How about building a greenhouse attachment?"  
"You do realize that's going to be worth several extra contracts to get the money for the materials **and** a few hours of convincing everyone to come over and help?" – Tails asked back. Even though the fox liked the idea, he was unsure if it would be possible to fulfill. A few moments later, the kitsune sighed and replied: "Okay, if that would make you happy."  
"Tails…If it's really that problematic, then you don't really have to-" – Cosmo did not get to finish her sentence, as Tails interrupted her: "Nonsense, Cosmo. I'd do anything for you. Even if it might put a strain on me or our budget." – After the mobian finished his speech, he looked at the clock – they were definitely talking way into midnight, as it was nearing one o'clock. – "We'll discuss this tomorrow. For now, let's just go to sleep."  
The plantgirl nodded, then remarked: "Just let me change my clothes first."  
Tails quietly complied, turning away from Cosmo as she took the towel around her body off, placed it on the bedside dresser to dry, then took her nightgown out and put it on. Said nightgown wasn't anything too risqué – just an ordinary light-green one. The plantgirl then lied down on the bed as Tails stood up and went to switch off the lights and then went back to bed. It didn't take long for the couple to fall asleep in each other's embrace, unaware that they were still being watched by someone out of this world…

* * *

 _Gaia's Realm, same night_  
Lucas was looking downright furious. So much that any breakable objects in the vicinity would probably be unable to survive the elder seedrian's wrath. Of course, seeing his daughter sleeping next to that fox wasn't really giving him any pleasant thoughts.  
"Lucas, easy there. I know you're quite short-tempered, but…"  
"For how long they were sharing the same bed, woman?!" - The male shouted, interrupting his wife's speech. - "At this point, that fox probably bedded her by now!"  
For Lucas, interrupting his wife's speech was probably one of the dumbest things he could do at the moment, as the blue-haired seedrian immediately said: "Lucas, while you were raging there after you saw Cosmo doing...That, I kept watching her. And I can assure you, in the moments between her "sinning" and what you're seeing now, she and Tails just quietly gone back to sleep. That fox didn't do anything to her yet. "  
"That's the keyword here, Hertia! "Yet"! These animals give in to their instincts any time they have an opportunity to do so!"  
"Lucas, calm down. If anything, they seem to be actively trying their best to keep these matters to themselves for now. They're biding their time for when they think it would be right. And besides, even if Tails did agree to her terms, who are you to stop her? Cosmo is no longer a kid, Lucas. She can take responsibility for the consequences of her actions."  
The reptilian-like creature sighed and replied: "I'm just...Very worried about her, Hertia. That's all."  
"You're overcompensating for what you couldn't give her back then, right?" – That question from Hertia hit Lucas like a knife. The male seedrian looked down and replied, sighing: "Yes, Hertia. Yes, I feel like a complete failure of a father. Yes, I am feeling like I didn't give her what she needed. But I cannot just-"  
"And yet we cannot do anything. Unless we intervene directly, she won't even notice we're watching her." – Hertia replied, interrupting her husband's speech. – "And even then, we have no right of intervention unless there is a critical situation about. Lucas, I don't feel like there is a point in you acting so overprotective towards her. It's as pointless as shouting at a wall."  
Lucas sighed and replied: "But Hertia, we clearly saw what she was doing in the-"  
"It's pretty normal for girls her age. No need to make such a big deal out of it. If I were you, I'd just leave Cosmo and Tails alone for now." – With that, Hertia walked away from the lake. Lucas gave it one last glance, seeing Cosmo and Tails sleeping peacefully, and then walked away as well, with the water of the lake once again reflecting the sky of Gaia's Realm.

* * *

 _Back in the mortal world, still the same night.  
_ Meanwhile, Cosmo and Tails were already quietly sleeping in their bedroom. Cosmo was having a rather pleasant dream – she and Tails were in the middle of a strange garden overgrown by various plants, with Cosmo lying right on top of Tails. The two were kissing deeply and passionately, with Cosmo oblivious to the fact that she had no clothes on – sure, she immediately noticed the feeling of Tails' fur brushing against her bare chest, but due to dream logic, she assumed that it was how it should be. The kitsune also had a pleasant dream of his own – he dreamt that he and Cosmo were in an enchanted spring on Planet Marmolin – the same one they fell into way back then – , kissing each other. In this dream, Cosmo also didn't have any clothes on at all, and Tails also was completely oblivious to this, just enjoying the feeling of being close to Cosmo and the sweet scent of her rosebuds.  
The two weren't exactly aware that some of the feelings they've had weren't actually coming from their dream – Cosmo was tightly clutching her foxy boyfriend's tails, while Tails himself had his face rather close to his seedrian girlfriend's rosebuds. But that mattered not to them – the only thing they were concerned with at the moment were their respective dreams of each other.

* * *

 _Ugh. Well, I tried to make it at least presentable. Not sure if I succeeded. Then again, considering some other things that end up here...  
Anyway, next chapter won't be a filler and, as I said before, will likely take place in winter (As in, in-universe winter.), and will go back to the "daily life events" format.  
And with that, Darky...Out!_


	11. Chapter 10 - Contrived Coincidences

_Yes, well... This particular chapter doesn't focus all that much on Tails and Cosmo's relationships, but instead brings a few other characters to light, although it doesn't jump straight to them head-on from the start. Was that a good decision? Heck if I know. Also, this chapter might feel a bit filler-y._

* * *

Normally Tails didn't really like winter mornings. They were always incredibly cold, there was the usual matter of firewood problems – Tails was lucky he had enough for the winter, but still – and after the holidays were over, the remaining months of winter had no charm to them whatsoever.  
This particular morning was different, however. Partly because Cosmo was with Tails, partly because he had some plans for the day off he decided to give himself – the latest contracts gave him more than enough money for at least a week, so he figured he might as well get some rest from messing with broken mechanisms. But back to the morning at hand…  
When Tails woke up, he smiled when he noticed that his seedrian girlfriend was sleeping next to him. Yes, her presence always made him feel a lot more…Seems like "safe" was the word that the mobian was looking for. And it was quite right – when Tails was with Cosmo, he felt like all the troubles of his past are so far behind that they're almost invisible to the naked eye. But right now the guy had a plan for today to deal with. Of course, first was to get up from the bed, take care of the usual morning routine, and check to see if the weather was at least decent enough to use the Cosmic Tornado instead of going by the Mystic Ruins train.  
But the way Cosmo was lying next to the kitsune…The smell coming from the rosebuds adorning the sides of her head… Tails shook his head, trying to get himself out of his daze. No, that was not the time to "stay for a few more minutes". The mobian gotten up from the bed, accidentally prompting the plantgirl to wake up.  
"Well, I tried." – The kitsune mused to himself as Cosmo got up and stretched her hands.  
"Good morning, Tails. You know, I think I might be sleeping next to you for every night until the weather gets warm enough – you are just so incredibly comfortable." – The seedrian stood up from the bed and continued: "So, what will it be for breakfast? Pancakes as usual?"  
"I guess just scrambled eggs and bacon will do. Of course, if you want something else, then I'll gladly have that instead." – Tails replied as he and Cosmo went to exit the bedroom.  
"Eh, I myself am getting sick of pancakes every other day. Might as well opt for the scrambled eggs as well." – With that said, the plantgirl went to go downstairs while Tails, in turn, went over to the bathroom and into the shower.  
While Tails was busy showering, Cosmo was taking care of all the breakfast matters.  
"Yeah, good thing he didn't choose pancakes – we're all out of necessary ingredients anyway. Sure, I could opt to just buy some pancake mix and use that in the future, but he did say a few times that pancakes made out of a store-bought mix just don't feel the same… So yeah, definitely not an option…" – A few moments afterwards, Cosmo's thoughts trailed a bit off somewhere else: "I wonder what plans Tails had for today? We've already been to the Mystic Forest yesterday, so I guess we're going out into the city today. Well, that's pretty obvious – we do have quite a lot of things to get. Oh well. I'm pretty sure we're not likely to bump into anyone during our time in the city."  
So, after Cosmo and Tails took care of their morning routine and were busy with their breakfast, Cosmo asked: "I guess it's a no-brainer that we're going into the city today, right, Tails?"  
Of course, Cosmo's timing of that question wasn't exactly the best – she asked it just as Tails was taking another bite of the scrambled eggs, so for a response, the kitsune gave out an open-mouthed "Uh-huh" and continued on with his breakfast.  
"So…Other than shopping for groceries and some other necessities, did you have any other plans or-" – Cosmo didn't get to finish her question because Tails took her fork with a piece of bacon on it and just quietly stuck it into Cosmo's mouth, and replied: "Cosmo, I'll tell you everything on the way, alright?"  
The plantgirl quietly swallowed and replied: "Okay. Sorry for being so impatient."  
And after they both were done with breakfast and the remainder of their morning routine – Cosmo taking a shower and Tails checking if his plane's ready for flight, as he and Cosmo had decided on taking the plane to Station Square instead of going by train. The two had already gotten dressed by now – Tails was wearing a brown coat and blue pants, as well as a grey scarf over his neck, while Cosmo wore a green winter jacket over her usual clothes and had a red scarf as well – and were getting ready for flight.  
"I'm curious about one thing, though." – Cosmo asked as she climbed into the passenger seat and Tails opened the hangar door with the press of a remote control button.  
"What is it?" – Tails asked as he started up the plane's engines.  
"Is there any proper landing spot in the city?" – Cosmo shouted out. Then the seedrian realized that her question probably sounded a bit stupid and added: "I mean, sure, you probably flied there more than once and you know all the right landing spots, but still…"  
"Well, most of the landing areas are too far away from the shops we're going to, so we're gonna have to walk for a while. Anyway, get ready for takeoff!"  
And in the next few moments, Tails flew the plane out of the hangar, and then, after getting high up enough, went for a U-turn, scaring Cosmo so much that she yelped.  
"Sorry, didn't mean to scare you! You alright?" – Tails asked as he straightened the plane's course out, no longer flying upside-down.  
"Don't worry about me! I'm…I'm fine! "– The plantgirl replied, still looking a little scared. – "Just…Not too used to flights, that's all!"  
"I'd better slow down for now, I guess." – Tails remarked as he slowed down a bit. The remainder of the flight went by more quietly – Cosmo was looking all around and admiring the breathtaking views, while Tails kept control of the plane.  
"You know, I'm still not used to seeing so much white all around." – The seedrian remarked after a few minutes of flight. – "And I'm especially not used to seeing any planets that would consider this kind of atmospheric temperature normal! Not that I'm complaining."  
"Hey, we're almost to Station Square! Get ready for the landing!" – And sure enough, the familiar skyscrapers of Station Square were already visible not too far away from where the plane was.  
"I'm not sure there may be a good landing spot here, though. I mean, is it even possible to properly steer a plane between all these buildings?" – Cosmo asked as she looked around.  
"We're gonna have to maneuver a bit to get to the spot. You sure you can take this?" – Tails asked as he steered the plane lower, nearing the skyscraper rooftops.  
"A little nervous, but I'm sure I'll be fine." – The seedrian replied, and as if in response to her, Tails turned the plane sideways. No, that was something she was not ready for. Just as the plane flied sideways near one of the windows, Cosmo saw a random avian-mobian – a grey pigeon – look out the window with a look of shock in his face. During the brief moments that Cosmo managed to see that random mobian, the guy mused something along the lines of "Typical day in Station Square" and resumed whatever he was doing.  
As Tails steered the plane through the skyscrapers in search of a landing spot, he was beginning to get rather nervous himself – the snow on the roads wasn't cleaned up yet, and landing on a rough ground wouldn't do much good to the plane. Soon enough, however, the kitsune breathed a sigh of relief when he saw a few random mobians cleaning up the snow on one particular stretch of road, and they had already cleaned up quite a long distance through.  
One of the mobians, a brown male weasel-mobian wearing a plain coat remarked: "Hey, Mark, am I the only one seeing the plane heading here?"  
The person the name belonged to – a black-feathered raven-mobian who also wore a fairly standard grey coat – replied: "No, you're not, Rob. It's as real as it gets."  
"Oh…In that case…Run for cover!" – Mark immediately dropped his shovel and ran off to the side, with Mark doing much of the same. The two managed to dive in just moments before the plane landed. As the plane kept going along the ground, it was nearing an obstacle – a wall of a nearby building, as the road took a turn relatively soon enough. Cosmo braced for impact…But luckily, the plane stopped at the border between the main road and the pedestrian road.  
"Wow. Finding a proper landing spot in winter is even harder than it is in any other time of year." – Tails remarked as he and Cosmo went to exit the plane. Or rather, the kitsune was the only one who actually exited the plane – Cosmo herself was still looking quite scared.  
"Tails…I've encountered murderous cyborgs, saw planets get destroyed, and almost witnessed the end of an entire race…And yet even after all that, I got scared by a plane flight, of all things." – Cosmo remarked as she struggled to get out of the passenger seat.  
"Well, I guess we may drop by a certain place before going out to deal with what exactly brought us here. The Chaotix Detective Agency shouldn't be too far away from here." – Tails remarked as he guided Cosmo out of the plane, then pulled out a remote from somewhere and activated the plane's security systems in case someone decided to seize it.  
"Ah, yes, the Chaotix. I remember these guys all too well, if only for the sheer hilarity of that one incident they've caused." – The normally quiet Cosmo couldn't help but giggle as she remembered how Tails pushed her out of the way of a huge disco ball that Vector accidentally kicked towards her.  
"Yeah, I figured we might want to visit them. After all, they're one of the few who don't know about your return just yet. Unless Cream told them about it." – And with that said, Tails led Cosmo in the direction of the small building that belonged to the Chaotix. As soon as Tails knocked on the door, he heard a familiar voice shouting: "Hey guys, looks like someone decided to visit us in person for once! Looks like they've got a particularly urgent task for us!"  
A different voice, which sounded more quiet and sarcastic in tone, replied: "Not all that likely, Vector. If it was urgent, then they would call us from the spot instead of coming all the way here."  
"That…Makes sense, I guess." – A high-pitched voice remarked.  
"Okay, even if it's not someone coming over with a case for us to solve, then we still got to answer the door, right?" – Vector shouted impatiently, and slammed the door open. As soon as he saw Tails, he said: "Hey, long time no see, Tails!" and gave him quite the handshake.  
"Yeah, yeah, I decided to drop by for a visit. By the way, you probably noticed I'm not alone, right?" – Sure enough, after Tails said the second sentence, Vector looked over behind the fox and noticed that Cosmo was just quietly standing, looking at what was ensuing in front of her.  
"Wait, what?!" – Vector shouted in complete shock.  
"Huh. Seems like Cream was telling us the truth after all." – Espio remarked quietly.  
"Of course she was! I'm pretty sure she's not the liar type." – Charmy replied in a somewhat annoyed voice, but got an elbow jab from Espio as a response.  
"Well…Didn't see that coming." – Vector said, scratching the back of his head. Meanwhile, Cosmo was blushing even more intensely – she already forgot what it was like to have people react in surprise to your mere presence.  
"So…Are you going to let us into the house, or are we just gonna stand there?" – Tails asked.  
"Oh, right! Where are my manners?" – Vector stepped aside and gestured the two to come into the house. – "Come right in!"  
Cosmo looked over at Tails, who then shrugged and replied: "Well, on we go" and with that, the two entered the modest building. Cosmo took a seat on one of the chairs in the reception while Tails sat in front of Vector.  
"So, what exactly brings you two here? Do you guys have a case for us to solve?" – Vector asked as he sat down beside his desk. Espio just let out an exasperated sigh as he went to exit the reception, with Charmy following after him.  
"Not really." – Cue the disappointed look on Vector's face. – "Just figured we might drop by for a while."  
"Oh…Well, I…Don't even know what to say about this. I mean, sure, why not." – Vector was trying his best to hide his disappointment, but still failed.  
"You know, Vector, it seems like you haven't been getting any work recently. Otherwise you wouldn't be so concerned about getting another case to solve." – Cosmo remarked as she looked a bit more around the office.  
"Actually, our detective agency was getting quite a bit of work. Problem is, Charmy gets distracted way too often. And always by the same person, to boot. So it makes some tasks more difficult for us than before." – Vector was impatiently spinning a golden ring on the table.  
"I'm not even gonna comment on that." – Tails remarked, looking off to the side, and noticed that Charmy was leaning into the doorway, gesturing to come over. – "Anyway, we still have some shopping business to take care of, so I guess we'll be going now." – And with that, the kitsune stood up from the chair.  
"Hey, care if I escort them to that one shop nearby? Maybe I'll find some extra work for us on the way, too." – Charmy asked, flying into the room. Vector sighed and answered: "Okay, why not."

* * *

"So, Vector told you guys about how I got distracted at some of the tasks, right?"  
Right now, Charmy, Tails and Cosmo were a decent distance away from the detective agency, and currently heading towards a nondescript shop not too far away. The question above was asked by Charmy after he felt like the group gone far enough from the agency.  
"Well…To be brutally honest, he did." – Tails replied hesitantly. Meanwhile, Cosmo was busy looking around – the view in the city during winter was absolutely gorgeous, with the way the snow was gleaming, making the very few and far in-between snow-covered trees look incredibly beautiful. It was helped by the fact that the weather was fairly decent – snowflakes were falling down ever so slowly, and there wasn't any wind to change their trajectory.  
"Figures. Guess I might as well tell what was the cause for my distractions, huh?" – The bee-mobian asked. As Tails nodded, he continued: "Well…There were some occasions when Cream and I met a bit more often than usual. And sometimes we ended up bumping into her during some of the tasks, and I…May have been busy chatting with her instead of dealing with the task at hand."  
"Charmy, if you're in love with her, just tell us – no one's going to tease you about it." – Tails replied as Charmy barely managed to avoid bumping into a random mobian.  
"No I'm not!" – The bee-mobian shouted, turning around, with an evident blush on his face.  
"Charmy, you can tell us. Tails and I are fairly mature and understand such matters just fine." – Cosmo answered quietly.  
"Ugh…Okay, maybe I do have…Those feelings for her. There, are you guys happy now?" – Charmy seemed to have gotten even more irritated after answering this question.  
"Please, calm down, Charmy. I actually think it's pretty sweet that you have got a crush on Cream. ("It's not a crush!") Have you confessed your feelings to her yet?" – As Cosmo asked this question, she noticed that they already arrived to the shop Vector mentioned.  
"Actually…" – Suddenly, Charmy's irritation shifted into anxiety. – "I didn't. I mean, most of the time, we were just having some small talk, and we rarely got to meet up anywhere other than during a task. So…" – The bee noticed that the trio had already arrived to the shop. – "Guess I'll just wait outside until you two are finished with your shopping, huh?"  
"Well…" – Tails hesitated with his answer, as he didn't want to seem rude, but he didn't feel like talking to Charmy anymore. Meanwhile, Cosmo felt that Tails probably wanted to refuse, but also felt that it would probably be rude. With both Cosmo and Tails hesitating with the answer, Charmy replied: "Eh, it's alright. I can wait."  
Tails went to enter the shop, while Cosmo waited behind for a bit and then said: "I know all too well how horrible things can go if you confess your feelings too late. I know this isn't usually my style, but I suggest you seize the opportunity while you can." – And with that, Cosmo went to enter the shop herself, leaving Charmy to his thoughts. The bee-mobian flew around impatiently for a bit, thinking aloud about some of the matters currently going on around him.  
"Aw, man. Things were so much easier before that darn invasion. Now everything is just…Too difficult. Nothing even feels the same… "Seize the opportunity while I can", yeah right. It's not like I'm not going to bump into Cream anywhere or anytime other than during another stupid task." – Charmy floated down a bit and, out of frustration, kicked a random tin can buried in the snow. Said can ricocheted off a nearby wall and…  
"Ow!" – Hey, that voice seemed familiar… Charmy looked over the trajectory of the can and noticed that Cream was just nearby, rubbing her aching forehead – seems like the can hit her head-on, but it wasn't too bad.  
The rabbit rubbed her forehead with her eyes closed for a few moments, then looked around to see where the object that hit her in the head came from.  
"Okay, that was weird." – Cream remarked, and soon noticed that Charmy was nearby, peeking out from behind a corner. – "Oh, hey there, Charmy."  
"Oh…Hello, Cream." – The bee was getting a little nervous. Well, so much for tempting fate. – "Look, I'm sorry about that can, I was just…"  
"Eh, no big deal. So, what are you doing here? Me, I came over here to get some groceries." – Cream replied.  
"Oh…I was just taking a flight around the city. Got myself a day off, all that…" – The bee-mobian himself wasn't sure that Cream would buy this excuse. – "Say…Do you need any help with your shopping?"  
"Sure, why not? I could always use a bit of help." – And with that, the two went to enter the shop.

* * *

Meanwhile, Tails and Cosmo were busy with their usual shopping routine – right now they were almost done, only having a few things left to buy.  
"You know, I'm kind of worried about Charmy." – Cosmo remarked as she placed something in the shopping cart and Tails pressed another button on his PDA, crossing that particular ware out of his shopping list.  
"Why so?" – The kitsune asked curiously. The plantgirl sighed and replied: "I mean, he's probably a bit too anxious to confess his feelings to Cream. I hope he doesn't botch it."  
"And I hope it won't be too little, too late. Just like how it seemed to be way back then in our case." – Tails said, sighing. Afterwards, he looked over the shopping list on his PDA and replied: "Well, seems like we've got everything we needed. Guess we're good to go now. The main problem would be making sure that the more fragile groceries, like eggs, or that carton of milk, won't be ruined by the time we get home. Other than that…" – The kitsune stopped for a moment as he saw Charmy and Cream enter the store. – "Huh, what do you know. A contrived coincidence."  
"Well…Guess we'll just take our leave now and don't disturb them." – Cosmo remarked as she moved the cart over to the checkout. Tails shrugged and headed over there as well.

* * *

Soon enough, Tails and Cosmo were already flying back home on their plane, as Cosmo looked down and wondered where Charmy and Cream went after they last saw them.  
"I just hope Cream made it home okay. Is she not afraid to be wandering around the city all alone like this? Her mom's probably worried sick about her, too." – The seedrian remarked.  
"Eh, I'm pretty sure she's fine. Considering I saw her duking it out with robots a few times, I'm sure she can deal with some creeps coming after her in case something goes wrong. And besides, something's telling me that she won't be making her way back home all alone either." – Tails replied, still focusing on the flight. Cosmo sighed and went silent for the remainder of the flight.  
A few minutes of flight later, the plane safely landed into the hangar that was Tails' workshop, and as soon as the kitsune halted the engines, he jumped out of the plane and went to check the cargo bay – that's where the groceries were stored in.  
"Well, at least over half the eggs didn't get scrambled on the way. At least what's left is still salvageable."

* * *

Meanwhile, back at Station Square, Charmy and Cream were heading towards the train station, as Cream had to head back home. Charmy actually helped Cream out with the grocery bags, only leaving the young rabbit with the more "light" stuff to carry around.  
So right now, Cream was just getting ready to board the train heading back.  
"Thank you for helping me out, Charmy. That was very nice of you, you know." – The young rabbit said as she got her tickets and went over to a nearby bench, waiting for the train to arrive.  
"Eh, it's no big deal, really." – The bee-mobian replied, scratching the back of his head. It seemed like Cream noticed that Charmy was blushing a bit, so she asked: "Charmy, are you okay? Why are you blushing?"  
"Huh? Oh, I...Well, Cream, I actually wanted to say..." – Sadly, Charmy's speech was interrupted by the announcement of a train coming in. Specifically, the train that Cream had to board soon.  
"Oh, I've got to go now! Goodbye, Charmy!" – With that, Cream picked up the grocery bags from the bench and ran off to board the train. Moments before she did, however, Charmy shouted: "Wait!"  
"Huh?" – The rabbit was somewhat confused at the bee-mobian's sudden shouting.  
"When you come around here again...How about we hang out somewhere else? I mean..." – Charmy couldn't quite get on the right trail of thought, as he was still new to those kinds of feelings.  
"Like...Like a date?" – Cream asked, and it seemed like it was her turn to blush now.  
"M...Maybe?" – The bee didn't know how to reply to this either. However, the rabbit's reaction was better than he expected, as she said: "Sure, why not. See you later, then!"  
"Yeah...Good-bye, Cream!" – Charmy said as the train gone off. – "Could have been worse, I guess."

* * *

 _Oh, and this chapter took way more time than it should have. Reminder: Never try to split your fanfic into "arcs" containing specific amounts of chapters each. Otherwise there will be fillers. And fillers are **bad.**  
And with that said...Darky Out!  
_


	12. Chapter 11 - Diadems and Proposals

_So, yeah, this particular chapter takes place about five and a half years after the previous one. Also, it gets a little suggestive in some moments. Just a heads up._

* * *

It was a quiet morning at the Mystic Ruins. The gentle summer wind was rustling the grass growing beneath a seaside cliff, the waves were occasionally crashing against the shore and the foot of the aforementioned cliff, the sky was a lovely blue with the occasional clouds, and the sun was shining brightly, but the weather wasn't too hot. In other words, it was the perfect summer weather.

Cosmo woke up and yawned, stretching, as she soon noticed that Tails wasn't sleeping next to her – lately, the two were sleeping in the same bed again, so the young seedrian had gotten used to seeing her foxy boyfriend sleeping next to her in the morning, or at least getting woken up by him running off to his workshop. This morning, however, the kitsune had apparently managed to sneak out of bed without waking Cosmo.

The plantgirl sighed and stood up from the bed, walking over to the full-body mirror on the opposite wall. Cosmo and Tails had been living together for six years already, and today was the seedrian's eighteenth birthday. And her body definitely showed – she was definitely taller than before, and even her curves were even more noticeable, but the main feature that indicated her adolescence, however, were the two red roses on the side of her head – previously, they were blooming just barely, but right now, they were in full bloom, and they certainly looked lovely – in fact, Tails often complimented the plantgirl on them.

"Well, now's not the time for self-admiration." – Cosmo thought as she exited the bedroom and made her way over to the bathroom, the door of which was left wide open, which indicated that it was used recently.

Taking a quick shower, Cosmo thought over the events that happened up to this day.

First, there was Sonic **finally** proposing to Amy. It may have taken the blue hedgehog some time to admit his feelings, but in the end, Amy got what she wanted. For a lack of better way of saying it, that came completely out of the blue – when Cosmo and Tails were out on a double date with the two, they got ditched for a few moments, and next thing the plantgirl knew, her pink hedgehog friend came running back to them, crying tears of joy and saying how what she was waiting for has finally happened.

Then there were Knuckles and Shade. The two echidnas were rather obvious with their feelings, even if their displays of affection towards each other were a bit different – be it Shade jabbing her red-furred boyfriend in the shoulder, or Knuckles giving his terracotta-colored girlfriend quite the verbal comeback in certain situations. In other words, the two pretty much defined the softer side of the saying "love hurts". It was only fair that Knuckles went on to propose to Shade a few years ago. Given the fact that Tails and Cosmo never went on any double dates with the two, the seedrian only got to know about the two echidnas' engagement by word.

Heck, it seemed like the past few years were all good things. Well, there was one bittersweet moment – it was that one last battle against Dr. Eggman. The man's desperation didn't do him much good in that battle – Sonic managed to not only take his latest machine out, but also made sure he wouldn't escape by knocking him unconscious, and as a result, the police arrived pretty soon and Eggman was sent over to some high-security prison. The bitter part came from the fact that, as bad as Ivo was, that scientist wasn't entirely trouble – he did help Sonic and the others save the world on a few occasions after all. As for Robotnik's lab? Tails took some time to salvage the supplies from there, and he certainly gone wild with them, using them to upgrade his Cosmic Tornado plane even further.

Cosmo couldn't help but giggle as she remembered how she would come over to the workshop and help Tails out in one way or another – she came by for a few minutes to leave her boyfriend some food because he often skipped lunch or dinner, and only left after a few hours either because she was rather interested in this particular field of work, because she decided to give Tails a massage after the fox spent a bit too much time in uncomfortable work  
conditions, or she just wanted to spend some time with her foxy boyfriend.

Speaking of Tails…Cosmo thought once more about how the kitsune matured over the years. He certainly was taller, and even had a bit more muscle tone to his body, and overall, he looked like quite the handsome young mobian. The seedrian couldn't help but blush as she continued thinking about her foxy boyfriend.

"He promised that he would propose to me someday. I know that sounds as naïve as it can get, but I'm sure he'll keep his promise." – Cosmo thought as she left the shower and went back to her bedroom to get dressed.

Sighing, the plantgirl went over to the bedside drawer, took out the pieces of her usual dress – back when Cosmo felt like her old dress was getting too small for her and couldn't compensate with its stretchiness due to the plantgirl already growing out of it, she had requested some help from Amy in creating a replica of the dress that would be more fitting. The dress was replicated almost completely in a different size, except for one small change – the plantgirl actually switched her tights out for a pair of white stockings. While it didn't have the same stretching and self-repairing properties, it still allowed Cosmo to fall slower. Although replicating that particular feature of her dress was incredibly problematic – when the third "test drive" turned out to be successful, Amy swore off of clothes making once and for all.

Now that Cosmo had gotten dressed, she looked over herself in the mirror once again and sighed.

"I wonder where Tails had gone off to…" – The seedrian remarked as she went to exit the bedroom and descended downstairs, into the living room. Not seeing Tails anywhere, the seedrian decided to just go on with her usual routine and proceeded into the kitchen. As she looked in the fridge for the ingredients for a meal, imperceptibly to her, Tails snuck out of a particular corner and then sneaked over to her. Just as Cosmo was about to turn around, the kitsune hugged her from behind and remarked: "Do you remember what day it is?"

"Not really. Care to enlighten me?" – Cosmo asked in a soft voice, as she already gotten used to Tails sometimes sneaking up on her like this.

"Did you really forget your own birthday, _my sweet rose_?"

The seedrian giggled at her boyfriend's words. Yep, recently, the fox has been getting quite a bit more romantic, and even began calling her pet names like "sweet rose", "lovely flower" and others. Not that the plantgirl minded – after all, in seedrian culture, pet names like those were considered the best form of compliment.

"With all that's been going on recently…Yes, I may have." – The plantgirl turned her head just enough so that the mobian could kiss her on the lips, which he did. The kiss was a relatively short-lived one, but it was rather passionate.

"Well then, I better get to the preparations. Calling the guests, getting the table ready, all the usual matters…" – And when Tails had gone far enough from his girlfriend, he muttered: "As well as the proposal."

Yes, Tails was definitely planning to propose to Cosmo on her eighteenth birthday. He had planned everything at least a month in advance, if the change to his usual contract schedule was of any indication. The kitsune was actually saving up money so that he wouldn't mess up when it came to choosing the ring for his proposal. Or rather, he intended to choose a ring at first…

* * *

(Flashback, a week or so ago.)  
Tails sighed as he looked at the clock on his PDA. 17:50, ten minutes before the jewelry store he was in was about to close. As much as the kitsune continued to look over the different rings on display, he still didn't like any of them – either because some of them seemed too cheap, wouldn't look good on Cosmo, or both.

"Sir, are you going to choose anything today?" – The store clerk, a black and gray badger-mobian, asked in an impatient tone. – "We'll be closing in ten minutes."

"Sure, just a moment." – Tails replied off-handedly. After some gear-shifting, the kitsune remembered what Cosmo mentioned a few years ago. Of course! Why would he have to propose the Mobian way? What better way to propose than to do it in a way much more fitting for Cosmo's heritage and traditions? Now the only thing left was to choose a proper diadem. Well, that's where Tails didn't take long – a silver diadem adorned with four small oval-chiseled sapphires and one larger sapphire of the same shape in the middle seemed like the perfect choice.

"Five minutes 'till closing, sir." – The clerk remarked.

"Actually…How much is this one?"

* * *

(Flashback ends.)  
Tails looked over the hiding compartment where he had stuffed the box with the diadem. Expensive? Sure, that thing was worth as much as the combined payment from several larger contracts. A bit too vain? Maybe. And yet Tails thought it would look lovely on Cosmo. Putting the case with the diadem back into the desk, the kitsune sighed and remarked: "Today's the day, Miles. There's no better time to propose to Cosmo than during her eighteenth birthday. Just make sure this day goes the right way."

And with that, Tails took out his cellphone and called in everyone else.

The remainder of the day up until late afternoon went by in preparation for Cosmo's birthday party – first, there was the usual matter of getting a proper birthday cake. Tails figured that a mostly green cake decorated with red cream roses would be the right choice – simple, but still appealing in both looks and taste. Inviting guests wasn't that much of a problem, either – Sonic, Amy, Knuckles and Shade weren't preoccupied with anything, Cream also had a day off, heck, even Charmy didn't have any assignments to work with today. The most important part, however…

Tails laid out a plan of the chain of events for today. The guests come over, everyone gives Cosmo her gifts, Tails tells Cosmo that she will get her gift later, then makes sure everyone is too preoccupied, sneaks off into the workshop, comes back with the diadem and proposes to Cosmo. That was the plan.

At the moment, Tails was waiting until the guests arrived. Of course, everyone kind of arrived at their own pace – naturally, Sonic came over first, with Amy trailing not too far behind. Cream and Charmy weren't in any particular hurry, but they arrived not too long after the two came over to the place. And finally, Knuckles and Shade came over last.

The guests…Haven't really changed that much over the years, except for maybe Charmy and Cream, given the fact that the two were getting into their late teens – while Charmy didn't change all that much, maybe getting a bit taller and having slightly longer black hair, and actually getting a proper clothing style – wearing something resembling a pilot jacket, pilot goggles, short blue jeans and brown boots – the same could not be said for Cream – the rabbit girl has gotten taller and a bit curvier, definitely taking after her mother, and her voice wasn't sounding so high-pitched anymore. But back to the events at hand…

"Well…Now that we're all here, guess it's only fair that Cosmo gets to open her gifts?" – Tails asked, as everyone handed over the various wrapped gifts to Cosmo. First in line was Amy – the two did get on a more friendly note recently. The package's rather incriminating shape easily suggested that Amy gave Cosmo new lingerie as a gift.

"Amy…Was that really necessary?" – Cosmo asked, not unwrapping the gift, as she blushed and smiled in embarrassment.

"Hey, Tails is staring at you nonstop when you're around anyway. Might as well give him even more of a reason to." – The pink hedgehog whispered to the seedrian. Then, in a louder voice, she added: "I was starting to get bored of getting you plant seeds anyway. Happy birthday, Cosmo!"

Cosmo sighed and put the gift aside. "What a way to start out." – She thought. Up next was a gift from Shade – a rather unusual-looking bracelet that seemed a lot like the one Shade wore most of the time.

"Just press that rune over here and you'll see." – The terracotta-colored echidna said about the gift. Cosmo quietly complied, and the bracelet quickly turned into an arm cannon of sorts.

"You might not want to clench your fist when it's in "Battle Mode" unless you're actually fighting, as it…" – Unfortunately, Cosmo realized this a bit too late, and the cannon shot out a blast of magenta energy, which busted right through the window, breaking the glass. – "Ahem…As it is how you actually fire it. Just press the rune over here again to turn it back into a bracelet." – Shade pressed the rune she was pointing at, and soon the arm cannon turned back into an ordinary-looking bracelet.

That was certainly an unusual gift. Shade only had this to say on the matter: "You're walking around unarmed all the time, figured you might need some way of self-defense."

Cosmo shrugged and remarked: "Well, even if I won't need any form of self-defense, that bracelet still looks really nice. Thank you, Shade."

"Hey, it's no big deal. While this isn't actually anywhere close to Nocturnus technology, it's still quite a faithful replica. Happy birthday, Cos!" – With that, Shade lightly nudged Cosmo in the shoulder.

Next was Cream's gift. The rabbit girl hesitated for a bit before handing Cosmo a relatively medium-sized wrapped box. Inside it was a bunch of various cosmetics used for makeup – eyeliner, mascara, there was even a dark green lipstick thrown into the mix.

"A little something for that extra appeal." – Cream remarked. – "While I'm all up about natural beauty, if one doesn't overdo it with makeup, then it only serves to enhance said beauty further. Happy birthday, Cosmo!" – The rabbit even went as far as to give the seedrian a friendly hug. During the brief moments of their hug, Cream whispered: "No hard feelings."

"Well then…" – Tails almost blew his cover as he was about to say what he wanted to give to Cosmo, but instead said: "I've also got a gift for you, Cosmo, but you'll have to wait for a while until I can get it."

"Betting a hundred rings he's gonna propose to her." – Knuckles whispered to Shade.

"Bet accepted." – The terracotta-colored echidna whispered back. Luckily for the two, nobody heard them.

And with that, the remainder of the party went on. No drinks – soft or alcoholic alike – or snacks were spared, and the music was also well-liked by everyone, too.

* * *

"Okay, Tails, time for the next stage of your plan. The guests are going to stay for quite a while, and they're all distracted with talking to each other." – Tails thought, and then snuck off out of the living room and into his workshop. Now the main part was to get the diadem case.

However, looking around, Tails noticed that the case wasn't in the drawer where he left. Or rather, it was nowhere to be found, for that matter.

"Oh, come on, Miles! How could you lose something so important like this?!" – After a few minutes of searching, Tails had accidentally stumbled upon the very same box he was looking for. – "A genius? Maybe. An absent-minded genius? So very much." – Tails thought, and soon picked the box up. Just when he was about to head on back to the living room, he heard Cream's voice from behind him saying: "So, that box looks like it was designed for jewelry. And it's too big for a ring. But somehow, I'm getting the feeling that you are going to propose to Cosmo anyway. Was a ring not enough?"

Tails turned around, and sure enough, the familiar rabbit was standing not too far away from him, behind him.

"Well…You see…I just…I wanted to make sure the proposal is…"

"That you propose according to the customs and traditions of Cosmo's kind." – Cream smiled. – "She is very lucky to have such a thoughtful fiancé."

Tails sighed, and remarked: "Look, Cream, I understand if you still feel left out, and-"

"Hey, cheer up, Miles. Today's the big day. I'm not feeling left out – I'm happy for both of you. Even though I've had some feelings for you… I understand that you will be much happier with Cosmo. Go for it, I'll cover you up."

The kitsune smiled and replied: "Okay, I will. Just make sure nobody notices the package too early."

* * *

Soon enough, the two made their way back to the living room – Tails hid the package in a convenient spot first, while Cream kept everyone else distracted. And soon enough…

"I'd like to make an important announcement!" – Tails said, and everyone else turned to face him.

"Fifty more rings to the bet." – Knuckles remarked.

"Nope, the bets are static." – Shade replied, nudging him into the shoulder. As for Tails, he walked over to Cosmo, and, still holding the box behind his back, he said: "Cosmo, remember what I said about my gift? Well, I have something to say first."

"Hey, that box is-" – Sonic didn't get to finish his sentence, as Cream and Amy both said: "Don't ruin the moment!"

"Cosmo, we've been together for more than six years now. And…Looking at you, you're nothing like that scared little girl you were when we first met, ten years ago. The four years of your absence were the worst of my life, and the six years that I spent with you were the best. However, I will see to it that we spend much, much more time together." – With that said, Tails took out the diadem case, and took the silver diadem out of it. – "Cosmo… **Will you marry me?** "

The plantgirl had a strange mix of confusion and shock on her face. Sonic had a somewhat questioning look on his face, Amy was rapidly repeating: "Don'trefusedon'trefusedon'trefuse…" and held her hands together, Cream was trying to keep her calm, but there was still a shade of anxiety to her look, Knuckles and Shade were both looking in the direction of Tails and Cosmo, and heck, even Charmy, who was practically flying underneath the ceiling of the room, began descending very slowly, looking in the same direction.

Even Tails was beginning to get some wrong thoughts. "Well, it's not like she will knock the diadem out of my hands and shout something out in anger. And it's not going to be the end of the world if she refuses, either…"

"Tails…" – Cosmo finally spoke up, getting everyone even more on edge. – "I…Don't even know what to say…It's very nice of you to go as far as to propose not by Mobian customs, but by the customs of my own kind…" – The seedrian's sky blue eyes were getting teary, and a smile formed on her lips. – "I…Of course I agree, Tails! I will marry you!"

Sonic, Amy and Cream let out a sigh of relief, Knuckles nudged Shade in the shoulder and shouted: "Aha! You owe me a hundred rings now!", the terracotta-colored echidna replied: "You do realize we're sharing money all the time and thus this bet won't change anything?", and Charmy returned back to flying circles under the ceiling, albeit for a different reason now.

As for the two lovers… Tails gently placed the silver diadem on Cosmo's head, and she hugged the fox as tightly as she could, still crying tears of joy.

It was decided – the union of two souls that belonged to different realms of life was going to happen after all. ( _Was that the cheesiest line I've ever written or what?_ – A/N)

* * *

It was late evening. The party was long over, Tails and Cosmo had taken care of their usual evening routine, and were now lying in bed next to each other.

"Tails, to be honest…I kind of wished that you would propose to me as soon as you could. But I didn't expect that you would go as far as to propose by seedrian customs instead of the ones used on this planet…" – Cosmo remarked, readjusting her position on the bed to get a little closer to Tails.

"Heh. You mentioned it off-handedly at some point when we were talking about some of your kind's traditions, and I kind of took a mental note on this. I caught you off-guard here, didn't I?" – The kitsune replied, hugging his seedrian fiancée with his right hand while caressing her hair with his left.

"Maybe by just a bit." – The plantgirl said, giving Tails a light kiss. The fox blushed at this. Considering that, right now, Cosmo had nothing but her new green frilled lingerie on, the kitsune couldn't help but reach a little lower with his left hand. The plantgirl noticed this and gently moved Tails' hand away, remarking: "Not until we're officially married. I didn't know you can be so impatient."

"Okay, okay, I wasn't seriously intending on going too far." - The mobian remarked, nervously giggling. As for Cosmo, she smiled and sighed, remarking: "It's alright, Tails. Just please, wait until all the formalities are said and done, and then we'll get to it as soon as we can."

"Well, we'll be done with that tomorrow. For now, let's just go to sleep." – And with that said, Tails reached to switch off the desk lamp and afterwards he and Cosmo closed their eyes, falling asleep. The two definitely needed quite a bit of sleep – after all, there were a lot of preparations for the wedding up ahead to take care of…

* * *

 _Well...Figured I might as well go for my take on this premise. I'll try not to stretch this part too much in terms of chapters and chapter size, I promise :P_


	13. Chapter 12 - Alcohol and Small Talks

_This particular chapter may have some questionable moments. Hopefully, nothing shot past the T rating. And I probably had too much fun writing certain moments.  
_

* * *

For the last few weeks, Tails and Cosmo were mostly busy with the preparations for their upcoming wedding. The whole process caused more than a few headaches, and left both lovers rather tired. Luckily, everything was already set behind – the place for the wedding ceremony was decided to be a particular place in the Station Square Central Park, the financial matters were resolved with quite a bit of help from their friends – well, it was mostly Sonic and Amy who chipped in a bit. – both the wedding dress for Cosmo and the tuxedo for Tails were already commissioned as well as the wedding cake, and there were still a few days left before the ceremony itself. At the moment, Tails and Cosmo were getting ready for their respective bachelor and bachelorette parties.

"It's rather strange how Sonic describes bachelor parties as "a guy's last hours of freedom". I mean, maybe that is how he sees it, but personally, I think there's no need to equate a marriage to a prison sentence." – Tails remarked while Cosmo was putting on her makeup. Normally, the seedrian didn't use any makeup whatsoever, but just this once, she decided she might as well go for it. Her choice of makeup was some green eyeshadow, a pink lipstick and a bit of black mascara.

"You know, in seedrian traditions, there doesn't exist such a thing as bachelor parties. I guess it's because that, to seedrians, a marriage represents the union of two kindred spirits." – Cosmo had just done all the finishing touches, so she looked over herself in the mirror a bit more, still speaking:  
"And that is why it's always held sacred – the man and the woman involved are committed to each other and only each other, and cheating on your spouse was considered an offense that would pretty much brand you as an outcast. And I heard that there was no such thing as divorces – a bond formed like this is a bond formed for the rest of the two seedrians' lives and even beyond."

"Yeah, I guess Greengate's society took marriage quite seriously." – Tails remarked, looking over at the clock – he already had put on his usual black pants and white shirt, but Cosmo still had some preparations left. "Guess Sonic didn't lie when he said that taking too long to prepare for any occasion is something most girls have in common." - The kitsune thought. Luckily, it didn't take long, and the two soon went downstairs. As they exited the house, Cosmo was the first to speak up: "Welp. So, we take the train over to the city, and from there, we part ways, heading in different directions – you head over to wherever the guys had invited you, and I head over to Amy's place."

"Exactly." – The remainder of the way over to the city went by fairly normally, with the couple exchanging some usual advice like "Don't get too drunk, no one wants to be suffering from a hangover on their own wedding" or "Don't go completely overboard, will you?" After Tails and Cosmo arrived to Station Square, just as they exited it, they exchanged one last kiss and parted ways for the night.

* * *

The walk over to Amy's house wasn't that long, and as soon as the plantgirl stepped into the fairly average house, she was immediately greeted by not just the very person hosting the party for her – Amy herself, of course – but also the guests that arrived over there, them being Cream, Shade, and heck, even Rouge decided to come over, although under a promise that she wouldn't sneak out of the house with any valuables – old habits die hard.

"I figured that, since you're the most modest of us gals, I might as well try not to go overboard with the party itself – just a typical dinner." – Amy remarked as she and the guests had went over to the dining room.

During the dinner itself, the girls were spending less time eating and more chattering about.

"…I mean, if Shadow did want to propose to me, he would probably need a hell of an expensive ring to impress me." – Rouge joked after she was asked about how things were going between her and Shadow. – "Overall, he's still being his usual cold self. But he does seem to be enjoying my presence – he seems about ten percent less "Sir Gloom and Doom" when I'm around. Now, what about the two "luckier" gals that gave up their freedom for a questionable choice? What do you have to say? How were things going with your respective husbands?" – Of course, Rouge was obviously talking to Shade and Amy. In Amy's case…Well, even after she stopped chasing Sonic and actually got him, she still couldn't help but constantly gush on about him. At least Shade remained more civil and talked about how the Angel Island guardian duty's been treating her and Knuckles.

"I mean, aside from a certain guest over here giving us quite a bit of trouble on random occasions, everything is going fairly smoothly. And there's nothing quite like sitting at the edge of the island and admiring the views." – The terracotta-colored echidna said, finishing her story. – "But hey, we can be talking about this at any other time, really. So, Cosmo…" – Shade turned to face the seedrian, who was quietly eating her dessert – a slice of strawberry cake. – "How's it been going with Tails? How close were you two getting?"

"Oh…Well…" – Cosmo hesitated to discuss the matter at first, but after some convincing from the others, she spoke up: "Well, he really helped me out a great deal with the wedding preparations. And the six years that we've been together for were actually the best ones of my life – it's rather nice to have a loving and caring person always by my side, especially after some of the things I've gone through. But sometimes…He kind of takes it a bit to the extreme. I mean, I really appreciate how he's trying his best to make me feel loved, but sometimes I feel outright overwhelmed."

"Well, in what way does he make you feel overwhelmed?" – Amy asked, curious. Even Cream perked up at hearing this question, as she was previously looking around with a somewhat disinterested expression on her face.

"The usual things…Kisses, hugs, pet names, compliments… Sometimes even gifts that make me genuinely wonder if the sole reason he takes any extra work is just so that he can pay those gifts off." – Cosmo replied, still blushing.

"Heh, if Sonic was that affectionate with me, I would be feeling like a queen." – Amy remarked, giggling. – "You're really lucky to have such a devoted lover."

"Pretty sure that if another world-ending threat suddenly appeared, he would stick with you till the very end." – Shade also remarked.

"I do, however, feel that this kind of devotion is…Rather self-destructive." – Cosmo remarked in a somewhat sad voice. – "I mean, back then, when I disappeared for four years, he was outright depressed because he thought he lost me forever. And right now, it feels like I'm his only reason to live. Not to mention I can't really do anything to return the favor…"

"Oh, can it already!" – Cream shouted. – "Look, the guy genuinely loves you! I mean, if I had a guy show that much devotion and loyalty to me, I would be feeling like a goddess!"

"Cream actually has a point here. I think you definitely deserve all this attention from him – I mean, you're probably the kindest person I know." – Shade remarked, taking a slight sip of champagne from her glass. – "And I'm sure that just the fact that the feelings between you two are mutual is enough of a reward for him, is it not?"

"You know, Cosmo, you've got to learn to not just appreciate the things that guy's doing for you, but also take advantage of it, at least for once! I mean, if the feelings between you two really are mutual, that fox's all too happy to outright shower you with gifts and attention. " – Rouge said, leaning back and emptying her glass of champagne.

"Yeah, what you're in here isn't just love – it's pure, undying loyalty. I'm sure your marriage's going to last a lifetime, and your bond – even past that!" – Amy remarked, even giving Cosmo a light nudge on the shoulder. The plantgirl smiled and replied: "Thank you, girls."

"Speaking of affection… Have you two gotten around to "it" yet?" – Rouge asked with a sly smirk. Cosmo didn't quite understand what the bat meant at first, but when she did, she immediately blushed and quietly said: "We…We decided to wait until we're married until we get around to that."

"Let me guess – seedrian traditions?" – Amy asked.

"Exactly. A person only gives themselves in to only one person like this. I heard that, on Greengate, marriages lasted until either of the lovers in the pair dies." – Cosmo replied.

"I wonder how many uxoricides and mariticides happened there…" – Rouge said, to which she got quite the death glare from all the other guests. – "Okay, okay, I'll shut up."

"Polygamy in any form was strictly forbidden there, and if anyone were to be found out cheating on their spouse, then they would be essentially branded an outcast. I often talked about such matters with some of the seedrian elders way back when I was still living on that space colony. I was quite a curious kid."

"Wow. A whole planet of puritans. Most of the women on Mobius would have gone insane if they were to live there even for a month." – Rouge remarked, looking off to the side.

"You included." – Cream said.

"Yep, me included."

And with that, the chatter between the gals returned back to the smaller subjects – random rumors and gossip.

* * *

As for Tails' bachelor party…

Tails soon arrived to the place where he agreed to meet up with everyone. The kitsune gazed up at the sign and frowned. Of course. A strip club, what else? And the most known one in the city, too.

"Of course." – Tails grumbled under his breath as he walked into the building. Welp, everything as he had remembered from one of the past parties – still the same eye-straining neon lights, still the same shameless stripper gals – oh, no, wait, one of them was actually replaced, but that wasn't on the list of Tails' concerns – and still the same people drinking a lot of alcohol.

"Hey, there he is!" – Tails heard a voice shouting from one of the tables. Sure enough, as he walked over, he saw the whole company over there – Sonic, Knuckles, Shadow and even Charmy.

"Wait, how did he get here?" – Tails asked, pointing to Charmy. The teenage bee shrugged and remarked: "Just some document machinations. And some convincing."

"Riiight." – Tails sat down beside the table with the same grumpy look on his face.

"Hey, li'l bro, is something bothering you?" – Sonic asked. The kitsune replied: "Well, I thought we'd opt for an ordinary bar instead of a place like…This."

"Relax, Tails, it's not like you're going to cheat on Cosmo with any of the gals here or something. Shad's not too happy with this place either, but you don't hear him complaining, right?" – Knuckles remarked, slurring a bit. Seems like he had quite a bit of alcohol already, as evident by a few empty glasses next to him.

"As much as I'd like to Chaos Control myself out of here because a good half of the guests here are the city's more known marginals, I figured I might stay, because it's rude to leave someone's party early, and they serve good drinks here." – Shadow replied, sounding rather sober.

"Guys, I won't be staying here for too long." – The kitsune said. – "I promised Cosmo I won't get too drunk tonight. What kind of husband would I be if I were to fail to keep my promise to my fiancée? And I don't want to be suffering from a massive hangover on the wedding either."

"Okay then. Hey, waitress! Fetch this guy something non-alcoholic!" – Sonic shouted.

"Hey, be more specific. It's not like all we serve here is alcohol. Not that you drunktards would know." – The waitress, a black viper-mobian, said. – "Will the Millionaire Sour be good enough?"

"Eh, why not." – Tails replied. – "Seems like they only serve fancy drinks here."

Then Sonic ordered more drinks for everyone else, but Tails didn't bother listening, instead looking around some more. The guests…Yeah, just like Shadow said, most of them were definitely out of many different parts of the town. Some of them were your typical drunktards and lowlifes, some of them were actually more high-class.

"I got to say, that gal's got curves, but she completely sucks at this." – Charmy remarked, looking over at one of the random strippers – a gray-furred doe with quite the large chest and wide hips. Tails tried not to stare, to which he got a nudge from Sonic, who remarked: "Let me guess - you're so into aliens that normal mobian gals don't get your attention anymore?"

The kitsune gave Sonic a death glare to end all glares, to which the blue hedgehog backed off, saying: "Okay, okay, bad joke, I get it."

"So…How's it been going with Amy, Sonic?" – Tails asked after a few minutes of semi-silence.

"Remember how I told you she's quite nice when she's not being a stalker?" – Sonic asked back. The kitsune nodded, and the blue hedgehog replied: "That still stands. We've been in a fairly good relationship, but…"

"But what?" – The fox asked as soon as he noticed that Sonic stopped for a while. The blue blur sighed and said: "Knuckles, as much as you seem to be enjoying it here, I suggest you move over somewhere else for now this conversation is not for any drunks to ruin."

"Okay, okay, I get it. I was en route to leave this place anyway." - Knuckles soon went over to the exit, and when he was asked to pay for all the drinks he had, he said, heavily slurring, that "Don'cha worry, these guys o'er at 'at table will pay up for me." and left.

"So, what's the problem with Amy?" – Tails asked, to which Sonic, after a bit of awkward grumbling, replied: "Amy and I have been together for less than a year, and she already wants to have kids."

"And I assume you're not ready for this kind of responsibility." – The kitsune remarked. – "What did she have to say on the matter?"

"Well, I did tell her that I didn't want to have kids yet." – Sonic answered.

"And her reaction was?"

"Better than I expected – after all, you know she's normally a walking proximity bomb, but when I told her that I'm not ready for that yet, she at first frowned at hearing this, but then said that it's alright, and she's ready to wait for as long as I need." – Sonic took a sip of his drink and continued: "So, what about you and Cosmo? How were things going?"

"Fairly average, I guess. I mean, the wedding preparations did cause quite a few headaches, but other than that, nothing too problematic." – The kitsune replied, sipping his drink as well.

"Oh, usually all the tiredness and headaches come not during the wedding preparations, but after the wedding. Specifically, on the first night after it." – Sonic remarked, stifling a laugh.

Overall, most of the bachelor party went by in a relatively friendly atmosphere, except near the very end, when Tails had to practically crawl out of a bar fight – long story short, one of the visitors thought it would be funny to trip the waitress and make her drop whatever she was serving, and then things went downhill from there.

* * *

Meanwhile, Cosmo was already en route to the train station – after all, it was the last train for tonight. The plantgirl was a tiny bit tipsy – she couldn't resist having at least one glass of wine. Luckily, she wasn't in a completely smashed state, but still had trouble walking straight. Tails soon saw her entering the Station, and frowned as he saw her state.

"Cosmo, you promised you wouldn't drink!" – Tails shouted as Cosmo got close enough.

"Hey, I had just less than a glaaass. Just baaarely on the bottom. I can still think straight enooough, so no need for any long, winded taaalks. Let's just boaaard the train and head on baaack home." – The plantgirl remarked, slurring a bit every now and then. Tails sighed and helped Cosmo get into the train. Once there, he felt her lean on his shoulder, a drunk smile crossing her lips.

"She definitely had more than what she specified." – The kitsune thought. – "Well, at least she's the only one who'll need hangover pills this morning. But she manages to be rather cute even in a state like this. "

And with that, the remainder of the way back home went by rather silently – after all, at this time of the day, there was hardly anyone bothering to take the train at all.

* * *

 _Yeesh...Well, I tried. I hope my lack of research on some subjects is not too apparent._


	14. Chapter 13 - Tears and Headaches

_Sorry for this particular chapter ending up a bit too short. The next few chapters are probably going to be 2k+ words at most, too, mostly because these chapters won't detail a whole lot of events and long dialogues happening in a row.  
_

* * *

At the moment, Tails and Cosmo were over at the Station Square park, near the place where they had arranged their wedding, currently finishing all the usual preparations in their separate places. Right now, Cosmo was sitting in front of a mirror with a frame that seemed like it was made out of live wood, sitting on a small chair. The plantgirl already had a rather modest, but still pretty dress on her – the corset was fairly ordinary, the skirt wasn't incredibly big or "puffy", and there wasn't much in the way of dress decoration other than a few silk roses on the bridal veil, and even that was put aside as Cosmo was busy brushing her hair – this morning, she woke up with rather messy hair, and didn't bother to brush properly because she was in a serious hurry. As Cosmo moved the hairbrush over her leaf-like hair one more time, she looked into the mirror and sighed.

"I so wish that my parents were here to see the wedding. As much of a bad relationship as I've had with my father, I still wish he would be there. I really do…" – Cosmo thought to herself, still looking into the mirror. Sure, she was quite happy to finally get married to Tails, but… The circumstances of their meeting way back then still soured her happiness. The plantgirl groaned and practically faceplanted into the table, beginning to cry.

"Is something the matter, daughter?" – A familiar voice chimed in from behind the seedrian. Cosmo looked up, and noticed that the mirror was showing that Hertia standing right behind her.

"M…Mother?" – Cosmo asked, her eyes a little teary.

"You're getting married to the person you genuinely love, and who loves you back. Shouldn't you be happy?" – The elder seedrian asked in her usual soft voice.

"It's just that…" – Cosmo sobbed. – "I just…I really miss you, mother. And I miss everyone else. My family, my friends…Everyone from the colony, really. And, as much as I don't want to admit it… I really wish my father was here, too. " – The seedrian had a hard time containing her sobbing as she spoke. Hertia went silent for a moment, but Cosmo could still see that her mother – or rather, the apparition of her – was smiling.

"Cosmo, remember what you said to Tails back then, when you two presumed you would be separated forever?" – Hertia asked.

"Whenever you need me…"

"Look for me, and I'll be right beside you. Exactly. And you can still communicate with me from time to time. I've been watching you, and I can certainly say that you and Tails will be really happy together. " – The blue-haired seedrian remarked. – "By the way, I'm not the only one who has something to say to you. I've let all the others say something as well…" – With that, Hertia faded out of Cosmo's view, but soon, Galaxina appeared in her place.

"Well, well, well. My little sister is certainly no longer so little, is she? Back then, I wouldn't have ever thought you would marry anyone of your kind, let alone someone who is of another realm of life entirely! But you know what? I approve wholeheartedly of your decision, sis. I'm sure you and Tails will have a great life together." – The younger blue-haired seedrian replied, and as she finished her speech, she also disappeared, with a seedrian with olive green hair and red daisies blooming on the sides of her head appearing in her place. Daisy, that one widowed seedrian who lost her husband during the war that destroyed Cosmo's home planet.

"Landar and I…Were almost inseparable before the war that destroyed Greengate. But then again, we're almost inseparable even now. I'm not going to lie – I really wish that whole war just didn't happen. But then again, one's happiness is another's unhappiness – if that war hadn't happened, you and that fox boy wouldn't have ever met. In any case, I've got one thing to say to you – I wish to you the best of luck in your life with your husband! I'm sure your bond will last your whole life, and even beyond!" – The olive-haired plantwoman remarked, and soon had disappeared as well.

The last one to speak to Cosmo was actually a male seedrian – more specifically, her father, Lucas, who was formerly known to her as Dark Oak. He didn't immediately begin his speech, instead looking down at her with a somewhat dismayed expression, then he spoke up: "My dear daughter…I've done so many things I'm not proud of. From destroying your home planet, to killing all those you knew and loved back on that colony, to even making you an unwilling spy. But you seemed to have moved on, not without help from that foxy boy. I'm not going to lie…I didn't really approve of your bond at first. But through the six years after your return, seeing you two together…It almost reminded me of myself and Hertia way back when we were still teens. Way back before Hertia was even chosen as the Matriarch of Greengate. Way back when life was…More simple. It was the Greengate war that obliterated not only many of our friends and relatives, but also our very bond. I wish to you that no conflict, ever, would make you two part ways, and that your bond will last for all of eternity." – After Lucas said that, all the seedrians from before had appeared to both sides of him, with Hertia standing just before Lucas.

"Just remember, Cosmo – you're not alone. Not only will you always have Tails with you…But we are also always by your side. **Always…** " – As Hertia said that, she and the others seedrians had faded out of Cosmo's view. The plantgirl wiped her tears, and whispered a quiet "Thank you."

Not a few moments afterwards, Amy barged in, shouting: "Cosmo, how darn long is it going to take you to get ready! The ceremony's starting in a minute!"

"Oh!" – That certainly startled Cosmo. The plantgirl turned back to face the pink hedgehog and remarked: "I'm ready, it was just that I…Was a bit lost in thought. Nothing major."

"Get that veil on, take that bouquet and let's go already!"

* * *

Meanwhile, Tails, fixing his costume and hairdo up near a full-body mirror, wasn't really in much of a hurry with his preparations – all he really had to take care of at the moment is his hair, and even then, all he really did was brush over his hair so that it doesn't look too messy, leaving three small strands of hair at the front as always. However, the kitsune seemed to be a little worried about something.

"Hey, what's the matter, bro?" – Sonic asked as Tails handed him back the hairbrush.

"I just…"

"Don't tell me you're having second thoughts about this." – The blue hedgehog remarked, to which Tails immediately replied in an incredibly defensive tone: "No way!" – afterwards, he shifted to a calmer tone: "It's just that…Cosmo snapped me out of my depression, helps me out with my work, and is pretty much the nicest person I've ever met. I know what **she** has to offer me, but what do **I** have to offer to her?"

"Well…" – Sonic briefly paused, thinking: "I can't believe I'm going to say something so cheesy.", and then continued: "I guess it's less about what you can offer to each other, and more about your feelings, is it not?"

"As in?" – That question left Sonic a bit speechless. He certainly wasn't as good at giving sentimental speeches as he was in running, so he figured he'd improvise: "As in, you and Cosmo were almost inseparable even before marriage! I dread to think how much it's going to take to separate you two **after** you're married!"

"You're making it sound like it's a bad thing." – Tails remarked, stifling a laugh.

"Quite the contrary, bro! It's actually quite cool how, despite you two being of different species entirely, you and Cosmo are keeping such a close and stable relationship!" – Sonic smiled nervously as he gave out that last sentence. "Well, that was a mess-up alright." – The hedgehog thought.

"A freak and an alien. A marriage made in heaven." – Tails remarked under his breath, barely holding back a snicker as he finished the last sentence. After calming down, the kitsune said to Sonic: "Well, thanks anyway – at least I'm not feeling as anxious after what you said."

"In any case, it's about a few minutes before the ceremony begins. I'll be off, bro. Try not to stutter during your vows, alright?" – Sonic remarked as he walked away. Tails was still sitting in the chair, letting his mind wander for the small amount of free time that he still had before the wedding.

"Heh. If anyone told me ten years ago that I would marry an alien, I'd laugh in their face and say that it was quite a funny joke. Seems like the joke's on me now." – The kitsune thought, looking up at the sky. – "Then again,why am I treating the fact that Cosmo's an alienlike a bad thing? If anything, she's much more beautiful than just about any Mobian girl I've ever met. One could basically say she is in-Mobian-ly beautiful ( _A lame attempt at a Mobian version of the "inhumanly beautiful" phrase - A/N_ ). And if I really want to stretch it, then one could basically say that there is no girl more beautiful in the whole galaxy than Cosmo…Or even the universe. Well, you'll get to gush on about her later, Miles. You've got a wedding to worry about at the moment."

"Hey bro, you're supposed to be going out already!" – Sonic remarked, to which Tails jumped up from his seat and remarked: "Already coming!"

Well, up next was the moment that both Tails and Cosmo have been anxiously waiting for.

* * *

 _My apologies if the chapters I've done recently on both this and my other fic seemed a bit too short. I'll try to get back to my usual writing format later on if possible._


	15. Chapter 14 - Vows and What Next?

_I feel like I'm really missing something in this chapter. I really do. Hopefully, it's not too short - at the very least, it's longer than the previous chapter I did._

* * *

"Okay…Don't mess this up now, Miles." – Tails thought as he stood near the wedding altar, waiting for Cosmo to come over. As the kitsune continued his wait, he looked around some more. Aside from his close friends, there were also a few guests that basically qualified as "Friends of my friends' friends" – Tails didn't recognize most of the guests at all. And while his close friends were mostly happy about the marriage, the "stranger" guests had more mixed receptions.

"I've heard his bride is actually a foreigner." – One of the guests, a black green-eyed female cat-mobian, whispered to another guest, a white mouse-mobian.

"As in, she's not from this area?"

"As in, she's from a different planet entirely!" – The cat-mobian replied.

"Well, I guess even freakssss and weirdossss find their love in one way or another." – Yet another guest, a purple-scaled female snake-mobian, remarked.

"I guess all that prejudice was to be expected." – Tails remarked to Sonic, who was currently standing nearby as his bestman.

"Yeah, guess some experiences may have soured everyone's opinion on any and all aliens." – The blue hedgehog remarked.

Soon enough, Cosmo had finally come over to the wedding area. And, well…Back during the planning month, when Tails bought that green gown for Cosmo, he knew it was going to look good on her despite not being too flashy, but he didn't think that it would look . The light green bridal veil that the seedrian wore was transparent enough to show Cosmo's pretty face – the plantgirl didn't bother much with makeup other than some black mascara, but Tails felt like that was plenty enough for her – after all, it was Cosmo's natural beauty that always captivated him so much. The two girls that Cosmo had chosen as her bridesmaids – Amy and Cream – were walking just behind her.

"You know, she's quite cute for an alien." – One of the random guests remarked.

"Can it already!" – Another guest replied in a somewhat angry tone.

"Even if that fox's tastes are rather…Exotic, I must admit that he really knows how to choose his girls." – One of the more eloquent guests said as Cosmo walked up the wedding aisle and Amy and Cream stood to her side.

"Today, we have gathered here to witness and celebrate the union of Miles Prower and Cosmo Royalbloom in marriage. Through their time together, they have come to realize that their personal dreams, hopes, and goals are more attainable and more meaningful through the combined effort and mutual support provided in love, commitment, and family; and so today, they will begin their life together, as husband and wife." – The priest, a black-furred wolf-mobian, said.

After a brief pause, Cosmo began her speech to Tails: "Tails…Or rather, Miles, as I feel your formal name would be more fitting for the situation… Even though the circumstances of our meeting were rather tragic, due to me ending up on this planet after having lost my entire family and all those I knew before, I still fondly remember our time together way back then, ten years ago. Even when I felt like I'm nothing more than a load in your journey, you were always there to cheer me up and to help me out even in the most dangerous of situations. When we were separated for four years, I wished with all my heart that we would see each other again. And so, when I returned to your planet, I could clearly tell how much you missed me. It pained me to see how depressed you were over my absence, and I was really happy when you finally snapped out of it, becoming a lot more like the cheerful fox I remember you being. The six years after my return were the best in my life, as I had spent them with you. I'm looking forward to living the rest of my life with you."

As the seedrian finished her speech, Tails spoke up next: "Cosmo, when we first met, I didn't quite understand at first what I felt – back then, I wasn't really concerned with feelings and romantic relationships. It was only after we spent so much time together during our travels that I realized how important you are to me. When I thought you were gone forever and that we would never see each other ever again, I…I'm not going to lie, I was very depressed during these four years before our reunions. And it was all thanks to you that I snapped out of my depression and returned back to a normal life. The six years for which we were together again were the best of my entire life – from the peaceful dates out in the Mystic Forest or going-outs into the city, to the occasional flights to some truly scenic and breathtaking places, to quiet evenings at our home when we would just sit snuggled together on the living room couch. No matter the season, we were together – be it snuggling in front of a fireplace at our home during winter, playing on the beach during summer, or going out into the Station Square park during spring and autumn. And even when I was busy tinkering with the mechanisms at my workshop, you would often come over and help me out with my work – although your presence alone would motivate me to work better. And so, even if your lifespan greatly exceeds mine, I look forward to spending the remainder of my mortal life with you – and maybe even further beyond."

"Do you, Cosmo Royalbloom, take Miles Prower as your husband to love and cherish forever, in the best and the worst times, till death do you part?"

"I do." – Cosmo replied, barely holding back her tears.

"And you, Miles Prower, do you takes Cosmo Royalbloom as your wife to love and cherish forever, in the best and the worst times, till death do you part?"

Tails hesitated for a moment before remarking: "If there's anything that I've learned from my and Cosmo's relationship…"

The pause was leaving most of the guests on the edges of their seats – heck, even Cosmo herself was feeling incredibly anxious from the tension. Not too long after, Tails finished the sentence in a rather determined tone: "…It's that even death cannot do us part!"

"Well then…By the power vested upon me, I declare this fox and this seedrian together for all eternity!" – The priest said.

Tails took a few somewhat nervous steps towards Cosmo, then lifted her bridal veil and kissed the seedrian on the lips. Normally, the two weren't all that used to kissing so passionately in public, but at the moment, it hardly mattered to either of them – right now, their thoughts were only focused on each other. The kiss lasted for quite a while until Tails finally let go of Cosmo and replied: "Well…Seems like here goes the point of no return. Then again, I wouldn't trade my life with you for even the whole galaxy."

While that phrase went over most guests' heads, it certainly didn't go over the heads of any of the close friends of Tails and Cosmo that were invited to the wedding – after all, they knew about the circumstances of their temporary parting all too well.

"I know, honey. I know." – Cosmo replied, her eyes a little teary.

"Someone pass me a handkerchief." – Amy remarked, barely holding back her tears of joy.

"Well…" – Knuckles walked out of the crowd of guests and went over to the newlywed couple. – "Surprised neither of you actually stuttered or hesitated during the ceremony. I suppose congratulations are in order. Hopefully your honeymoon will go **really** well, if you catch my drift." – That dirty remark didn't do Knuckles any good, as he immediately got an elbow jab from Shade, who also walked over.

"Idiot." – The other echidna remarked, then turned to face Tails and Cosmo and remarked: "In any case, best of luck to both of you. Just try not to get infatuated with each other to the point of shutting in, will you?"

"Wow, you guys cannot into congratulations and sentiments. Then again, neither can I." – Sonic remarked, then turned to face Tails and, slightly ruffling his hair, remarked: "Here's hoping you'll be quite happy with Cosmo, buddy."

"Of course I will." – Tails remarked, fixing his hair. Afterwards, Tails led Cosmo out of the marriage area and over to where he had landed his plane – long story short, while Cosmo had arrived by train, the kitsune decided to take his plane there instead. Helping Cosmo get into the plane, which she visibly struggled to do due to her gown skirt getting in the way a bit, Tails started up the plane's engine and, before flying off, waved goodbye to everyone else. One of the random guests remarked that leaving a wedding on a plane is a bit too flashy, to which they were immediately silenced by another guest with a well-timed fist to the side of their head.

During the flight proper, Tails was mostly stuck in his thoughts while trying to keep control of the plane. He didn't really feel like his and Cosmo's life would change that much after the commotion, but in all honesty…It felt almost like a start of a completely different life. Sure, the seedrian would still always be by Tails' side, and he still had his friends to back him up, but even then, it all just felt…Different.

"All those formalities are just making your head spin, Miles. It's all the same – you're still going to live happily with Cosmo and spend most of your weekdays tinkering in your workshop. Not much has changed because of a few formalities…" – Tails then blushed and remembered something else. His promise, that's what made it all feel different now. How he promised to not ever bring up any…Delicate matters until he and Cosmo were both at the right age to do so.

"Tails, are you okay?" – Cosmo asked, snapping the kitsune out of his thoughts.

"Huh?" – Tails looked down, and noticed that the plane was already approaching the hangar runway.

"You seem to be worried about something." – The plantgirl remarked as her foxy husband steered the plane downwards for a landing.

"It's just that… Nevermind. I was thinking over a question that probably bothers you as much as it bothers me." – Tails replied, exiting the plane and leading Cosmo out of it as well.

"And the question is…"

" "What next?" – that's the question." – The kitsune responded.

"For now, I guess we just go over to that place you were talking about, and celebrate our honeymoon. And at the very current moment, care to help me slip out of this gown? My everything is aching from that corset…" – Cosmo winced and groaned, as if to emphasize the point.

The kitsune nodded, and walked over to Cosmo to help her out of the gown. While Tails was busy unzipping Cosmo's corset, he looked away for a bit – not because he didn't like what he could have seen, but because, even despite the fact that he and Cosmo were officially a married couple now, he still had some modesty issues. Still looking away, after hearing the sound of cloth falling on to the floor and a few quiet steps, the kitsune asked awkwardly: "So…Anything else you need help with?"

"N-not really… I'll take care of the rest." – With that said, Cosmo ran off to the main part of her and Tails' house, and soon returned in her normal green and white dress.

Afterwards, the two went to a more routine procedure – Tails had all the necessary stuff already packed up and left in the hangar, so the two had minimal amounts of work left on them.

"From what I've heard, seedrians also have something akin to a honeymoon in their traditions. Except it's called "Year of Love's Bloom", and as you might have guessed from the title, it lasts a whole year instead of a month." – The plantgirl said, trying to start a conversation.

"Wow, talk about some serious commitment." – The kitsune replied, helping Cosmo load up a particularly large case into another, larger plane's cargo bay.

"And there also exists a good luck omen related to it – if a newlywed couple conceives their first child during their Year of Love's Bloom, it is said that the child will be blessed with good luck for the rest of their life." – The seedrian remarked as if by accident. Tails turned to Cosmo with a "You're kidding, right?" kind of look and asked her: "What are you getting at?"

"Nothing!" – The plantgirl yelped in a higher-pitched voice, blushing heavily. Trying to change the subject, she remarked: "W-what's in those cases anyway? I don't remember you needing that many spare clothes."

"Oh, well…"- Now it was Tails' turn to blush, so he off-handedly replied: "You'll see when we get to the place."

"Maybe you can at least…Enlighten me on where we're going?" – Cosmo asked, wiping some sweat from her forehead.

"Well…Let's just say it's far away from the city, and a good vacation spot to boot. No further details." – Tails winked at Cosmo after the last sentence, to which the plantgirl just giggled and remarked: "Okay, I guess I'll just stop with the myriad of questions."

"While we were busy talking, we already got that last case loaded in. Ready to go?" – Tails asked, climbing into the larger plane that they loaded all their stuff in. Cosmo nodded and climbed into the passenger seat.

"Good thing I don't have to re-open the hangar doors." – The kitsune joked as he started up the plane's engine.

 _It's all leading up to **this,** ain't it?  
_

* * *

 _So, the next chapter's very likely to have an M-rated version of it as well, posted separately. Also, from that M-rated chapter, there will be a series of lewd Taismo one-shots posted together with it. Some of them taking place during the couple's honeymoon, some of them taking place within their daily life. But that does not mean that this fic is going to stop there - far from it, it's going to actually progress further. But I won't spoil you the rest of it. With that in mind…_  
 _Darky… Out!_


	16. Chapter 15 - Honeymoons and Vacations

_Dang it. I think I added too much "fun stuff" to the original draft of the chapter - it was 3.5k words, and after editing, it went to 1.5 words. I'll upload the M-rated version as a separate fic, titled "New Bloom Untold", which will also include several other Taismo lemons as well._

* * *

"You know…I was just…Thinking… Maybe we could build our new home here later on? This island is such a nice place – it's nice, sunny and there's not a soul for miles around save for the local wildlife."

"Cosmo, you know all too well that we won't be able to stay here forever – I've still got work to do out in the city, and as much as I'd like to stay away from it, it's a fairly straightforward matter of cruel reality."

"Well…Can't we at least build a vacation house here? So that we may still come over here every now and then…But for more than just a single afternoon every few weeks?"

"I'll consider it, my dear…"

* * *

 _"I'll consider it…"  
_  
Tails' thoughts were mostly focused on the current destination of his flight. The short little dialog that he remembered right now was what he and Cosmo talked about during one of the times they were out on a particularly scenic island – the place was a perfect vacation spot, being quiet and usually having good weather. The only problem was that the place was completely isolated from any civilization, so electricity, phone communications and indoor plumbing would be out of question…Except that Tails could still fix the first and the third problem no thanks to some tinkering around, and the second hadn't troubled him all that much…

Just him and Cosmo, all alone on a small island paradise…

"Tails, are you alright?" – Cosmo's voice had snapped the kitsune out of his thoughts. Tails shook his head and asked back: "Why are you asking?"

"You still haven't told me what the place is." – The seedrian was getting a little impatient, and the flight sickness, even despite the fact that Tails' plane moved at a reasonable speed, was still bothering her somewhat.

Just now, Tails realized that in his daze, he almost forgot that the very place he wanted to bring Cosmo to was just a few yards away from where they currently were. Had he been dazing out a bit more, he certainly would have overshot it. Soon enough, the kitsune went in for a landing, and, after he helped Cosmo get out of the plane, asked: "Remember this place?"

The seedrian looked around – it was certainly the very same island where Tails would take her out on dates every few weeks. However, something was off…Just a little bit.

"This…This is the island where we would usually go out for a date, is it?" – Cosmo asked, smiling.

"Exactly. And, as you might have noticed, there is a little something extra here as well."

Now Cosmo realized just what was off – there certainly wasn't a small house standing on the seashore. The house was fairly simplistic, just one story tall. However, not too far away from the house's main entrance, there was a small wooden pier.

"We used to watch the sunset from this spot a whole lot. So, how about we get into the house and you have a look around?" – Tails asked, leaning on to Cosmo's shoulder a bit. The plantgirl responded with: "Sure thing. I'm sure the house is just as nice on the inside as it is on the outside."

Tails was by no means a furniture designer, really, but it didn't matter all that much – the vacation house had all the necessities, and that's what mattered to the two. After looking around the house for a bit, the two brought their numerous cases over to the house proper and began to unpack. The particularly large case, which they were unpacking in their shared bedroom, turned out to have contained a whole lot of different outfits for Cosmo. Aside from her spare lingerie, a spare dress and her light green swimsuit, there were also some…Interesting articles of clothing, like a stereotypical French maid uniform, or an apron that had "Only meant to be worn naked" written on it. The moment Cosmo noticed the latter, she turned to Tails with a rather questioning look. The fox blushed and remarked: "Yes, well… There are some things I just wanted to try out during our honeymoon. The least I say about them , the better."

"As long as it's nothing too humiliating or disgusting, it's fine with me." – The plantgirl replied, smiling. Her foxy husband , still a little nervous, replied: "Hey, I wouldn't ever make you do anything too bad. Umm…Just one little thing I'd like to suggest right now, though."

As Cosmo turned to Tails with a questioning look, the kitsune replied: "I want you to get your swimsuit on. I figured that a stroll around the beach would be a good way to pass time before the night."

The plantgirl blushed a deep red and replied: "Okay…If that's what you want, I guess."

With that said, Cosmo slowly took her clothes off, still blushing because of the fact that she was undressing right in front of Tails. Sure, the two already had nothing to hide from each other, and what Tails could see was nothing he hasn't already, but even then, Cosmo still felt rather embarrassed about the whole prospect.

"Come on now, Cosmo. You two were together for six years, not to mention he's officially your husband. You're not breaking any seedrian laws whatsoever." – As this thought ran through the seedrian's head, she noticed that she had already stripped down to her underwear. Still blushing, she asked: "Umm…Would you like to…You know…Watch?"

All the response Tails gave her was a rather unsure nod.

(A little scene was edited out of here, which will only be in the M-rated version)

* * *

"Well…You seem to be enjoying the view quite a bit." – The plantgirl remarked, still blushing intensely as she reached for her swimsuit that was lying a little off to the side. Somehow, when she put the swimsuit on, it had Tails relieved for a moment – if anything, the blood pressure was giving him some trouble thinking straight.

"So…" – Cosmo asked, looking at Tails after putting her swimsuit on. – "Off we go?"

"Let me get my swimming trunks on, and then we're off." – And with that said, the fox reached for the case where he had packed his clothes, and took out his usual red swimming trunks. After getting them on, he replied: "Okay, let's go now."

The walk around the beach was certainly quite relaxing, and helped both Tails and Cosmo alleviate some of their nervousness.

"I guess all the nervousness is coming from our complete lack of experience per se. I mean, all we have is just theoretic knowledge, with nothing in terms of practice." – Tails remarked, sitting down at the edge of the pier next to his seedrian wife.

"I've also heard that the first time may be a little painful for the female. You promise you'll be gentle?" – The plantgirl asked, leaning a bit closer. The kitsune smiled and responded: "Of course I will, honey. I would never purposefully hurt you."

While the two were busy talking, the sun was already setting. Tails was the first one to get up, taking his wife's hand and helping her stand up as well, then going as far as to outright carry her in his hands all the way to the bedroom.

"Tails, that's not exactly necessary, you know." – Cosmo remarked, trying not to giggle.

"I just want you to have fond memories of this particular evening. It's small details like those that matter. " – The kitsune replied.

The seedrian sighed at this, but didn't say anything else, letting her husband carry her all the way to their bedroom. As Tails placed her on their bed, she replied: "Maybe you'll help me out of this swimsuit while you're at it?"

"So **now** you're getting into the mood." – The kitsune stated in a tone that made it sound like a rhetorical question. – "Here we go, then."

(Naturally, the "fun" part is exclusive to the M-rated version.)

* * *

The two hardly kept track of time, but when their pleasure began to subside, Cosmo was the first to speak up.

"I've never imagined it would be that great of an experience…" – The seedrian said, recovering her breath as she spoke.

"I've usually heard that the first time isn't supposed to be too enjoyable." – Tails said, letting go of his wife and lying down next to her.

"Maybe you've just heard it from the wrong person. While I do know that it can only get better as we both get more experienced… I don't really think it can get any better." – Cosmo remarked, pulling the blanket over her and Tails' bodies – the wind blowing through the open bedroom window hardly even ceased even now, making Cosmo question how she didn't notice the wind during the process itself.

"We'll see about that – we have a whole honeymoon ahead of us after all. Goodnight, Cosmo." – Tails said, reaching to switch the desk lamp off.

"Goodnight, Tails. I love you." – Cosmo repied, nuzzling closer to her foxy fiancé. Surely, the two had a love-filled month ahead of themselves… Hopefully, the end of that month won't present them with any surprises…

* * *

 _Welp...Sorry for castrating (no pun intended) this chapter for the sake of keeping the T-rating. Just goes to show how all of the chapter's substance was entirely in the lemon part alone._


	17. Chapter 16 - Sickness and Expectations

_First: I'm finally back.  
Second: This chapter is a complete and utter **mess**. I'm still not proud of how it turned out, partially because I'm just plain never proud of my work, partially because this chapter took **way** too long to get done, not to mention it went through at least one full reiteration. Chances are it'll be getting a rewrite later, because I honestly feel like this is one of my **weakest** chapters so far._

* * *

Tails' and Cosmo's honeymoon has went over **really** well – the two certainly enjoyed spending an entire month together on a faraway island, but they still had to return back anyway – Tails had his repairs job to take care of, and Cosmo just missed the tranquil atmosphere of the Mystic Ruins.

After the two had returned, their life went back to a relatively normal one – nothing too eventful was happening in the past week or so. That is, until one particular night…

Tails was woken in the middle of said night by some…Rather nasty sounds coming from the bathroom. Specifically, retching sounds.

Knowing that Cosmo is the only other person in the house, Tails was honestly a little worried for the plantgirl. She couldn't have gotten sick, could she?

The fox immediately rushed over to the bathroom, and sure enough, his suspicions were confirmed – Cosmo was just standing next to the sink, washing her mouth, looking a bit paler than usual.

"Oh… Sorry for waking you in the middle of the night, dear…" – Cosmo remarked in a weak voice. – "I guess the evening meal didn't sit all that well with me."

"But…It was freshly prepared. And I'm pretty sure you didn't mess anything up **that** badly." – Tails remarked as Cosmo turned the water off.

"Well…I do hope I'm not sick, then." – The seedrian responded as she walked out of the bathroom together with Tails.

"Then again…" – Cosmo smiled and put her hand to her navel. – "I suppose that our honeymoon wasn't without its consequences after all."

Tails chuckled at this and remarked: "We'll find out tomorrow. You sure you can tolerate a quick flight to the city?"

"Well…Maybe we'd better take the train. We-we'll see how it goes tomorrow." – The plantgirl replied as she and Tails lied back down in their double bed.

"Well… I suppose congratulations are in order."

On the next day's afternoon, Cosmo and Tails had went for a quick doctor's visit. All it really took is a quick ultrasound check-up, and the couple's theory was confirmed – Cosmo was, indeed, pregnant with Tails' child.

"Although I would like to question how that is even possible…" – The nurse – a white sheep-mobian – remarked. – "I feel like I'm going to have a hard time understanding it anyways. In any case…" – The sheep readjusted her glasses. – "Seems like you're barely a couple days in, too, Mrs. Prower."

"I guess that confirms it. It was a "honeymoon mishap" after all." – Tails remarked.

"Well, doesn't seem like there are any overly notable deviations in the child's development, either." – The nurse said after looking over the computer screen some more. – "Hmm…Looks like that's it, I guess."

"Thank you." – Cosmo remarked as she pulled her dress back over her navel and got up from the check-up chair.

"Just doing my usual check-up work." – The sheep said as Tails and Cosmo left the diagnostics room.

After the two were out of the diagnostics office, Cosmo remarked: "Well… Those are some good news alright."

"Yes, for sure. You're probably really happy about the fact that you'll get your wish to repopulate your species fulfilled, aren't you?" – After Tails had asked this question, the plantgirl embraced him and responded: "Of course I am. And you know all too well I wouldn't trust any other person – mobian or seedrian – to do so."

"Alright, we'll have our lovey-dovey moments later, when we get home." – The kitsune remarked as he attempted to wriggle out of his wife's embrace. – "For now, we'd better head back to the train station. "

* * *

On the way over to the station, the couple kept on discussing all the necessary preparations they'd have to make – such as repurposing the guest room into a kids' room, buying all the usual "kid stuff", all that.

"I mean, the room is actually pretty spacious. Well, at least by a child's standards. And I'm pretty sure we might even be able to fit a miniature garden in the room as well." – Cosmo remarked, then giggled and added: "Although I am a little unsure if that would fit in the room if the child's going to be a boy, though."

"I take it someone's got a "bun in the oven", so to speak? Or should I say…A seed in the garden?" – A familiar voice spoke from just off to the side of the couple as they continued chatting. Cosmo turned around, and sure enough, the person speaking was Amy.

Cosmo blushed at the question, and shyly remarked: "Well… I guess you could say so."

"Hey, take it easy, Cosmo. Truth be told…" – Amy grinned shyly. – "Let's just say you're not the only expecting girl here."

"Didn't take you long to convince Sonic to agree on starting a family, huh?" – Tails remarked.

"You don't know the half of it. I would actually want to tell you…" – Before the pink hedgehog could continue any further, Cosmo remarked: "Maybe later, Amy. I just want to get home. I'm not really feeling well."

"Come on, Cosmo, if you want to…" – Amy didn't get to finish her sentence, as the seedrian touched her hand to her forehead and slumped down onto a nearby bench. – "Oh dear, that was insensitive of me."

"I…I'm fine, just… Just need to sit down for a few moments." – Cosmo responded weakly.

"Uhh… Should I call an ambulance?" – Amy asked in a somewhat worried tone.

"No need for that, Amy… I'm fine, at least relatively speaking." - The plantgirl replied despite the dizziness. That didn't stop Tails from voicing his concerns for his wife: "Are you sure you're going to be fine during the train ride?"

"Yes, I'm sure I won't faint. I've…" – The plantgirl winced and gave out a reassuring smile at the same time. – "I've been through worse things, trust me."

"Heh. If such a situation were to happen to me, I'd probably ask Sonic to carry me back home on his arms." – Amy remarked, giggling. Her joke did not exactly elicit any kind of positive reaction – seeing that the two gave her a look that was equal parts confused and annoyed, the pink hedgehog remarked: "Anyway… It's just a few minutes of walking from here to the station."

After the two helped Cosmo get up from the bench, they slowly made their way over to the station and boarded the train. On the way back to Mystic Ruins, Tails repeatedly asked Cosmo if she's feeling okay. Luckily for Cosmo, it seemed that the light-headedness was already subsiding, so the only thing she had to worry about was the train ride proper. In fact, the moment the group gotten off the train at the Mystic Ruins station, Cosmo was walking back home just fine.

"So… Have you two thought of any names yet?" – Amy asked to the seedrian. The plantgirl blushed and remarked: "Tails and I would prefer to leave the naming matter until the child's actually born."

"Hey, I'm just asking." – The mobian responded, shrugging. – "Anyway, I think we'll be parting ways from here – Sonic's probably going to be worried if I don't get home by the usual time. See ya!" – And with that, Amy walked back over to the train station while Cosmo and Tails headed back over to their house on a cliff.

* * *

"Whew. That was a hectic first half of the day, don't you agree?" – Tails remarked as he and Cosmo sat down on the living room couch.

"Yeah…" – The seedrian looked around for a bit and remarked: "I didn't notice just how messy this house was when we were leaving. I'd better get to-" – As Cosmo got up from the couch, Tails immediately pulled her back and said: "Nope, sorry. It's out of question. You'd better have some rest for the remainder of the day, I'll take care of the rest."

"Come on, Tails. I may be pregnant, but I'm not helpless. Besides, I'm feeling fine already." – The alien responded. Tails reached over closer to her and kissed her on the cheek, then remarked: "Alright, I'm not one to be stopping you, honey. Just remember – you can always lie down for a bit if you feel sick."

"Very well. And…" – The plantgirl blushed. – "I already told you how thankful I am for your help with…Repopulating my kind. Also…" – Cosmo smirked. – "My question from back then still stands. Do you think our kid's going to have green or orange hair?"  
"Hey, I'm an engineer, not a genetic." – Tails remarked, shrugging. After a few moments, he remarked: "But, while we're at it… My bet's on orange hair."

"One thing's for certain – we'll never know until the time is right." – The alien responded as she ran off to get cleaning supplies.

* * *

One tedious clean-up later, Cosmo heeded Tails' advice and figured she might as well lie down on the couch. Tails wasn't in the house proper right now, having had gone off to the workshop for the cleaning time, so Cosmo was pretty much left in the living room with just the company of her own thoughts.

"And to think… If, way back when I was a kid, someone told me I would marry an animal and bear their child, I'd think they're just messing with me and tell them off." – The plantgirl giggled at that thought. – "It's rather ironic how events that seemed tragic at first can let a person change their life for the better. I guess life is just that – full of irony and surprises. Not that I'm complaining. As much as a part of me wishes Tails and I met under more peaceful circumstances, I still like it the way it already went. "

With these thoughts, Cosmo had drifted off to a nap. Surely, there were more surprises that life had in store for the seedrian, but somehow, she had the feeling that everything will be alright.

* * *

Meanwhile, Tails was busy applying some finishing touches to some random appliance he was repairing. Honestly, the kitsune could have finished this one on the exact day after he and Cosmo got back from their honeymoon, but there was just one distraction after another getting into his way.

"Truth be told, I sure am going to miss my adventuring days. Those times when some random megalomaniac – usually Eggman – surfaced with another overcomplicated evil plan and I had to tag along with Sonic on another one of those adventures. On the other hand… After what I've gone through way back then, all I'm asking for is a quiet, peaceful life with my loved one. And with all brutal honesty, I don't regret giving up on my adventuring days the tiniest bit. Even if it is a tad too early for me to retire." – As Tails thought that last sentence out, he couldn't help but chuckle.

"Then again, staying over at my workshop every day does get boring after a while. Maybe Cosmo and I should visit some other places sometime. Or maybe just have one of those sight-seeing flights again – hopefully she won't get the worst mix of flying sickness and morning sickness during it, though." – Miles temporarily snapped out of his thoughts, and noticed that he got a little carried away, adding a few extra details to the appliance by accident. Hurriedly fixing them, he said out loud: "But right now, I should probably stop being such an absentminded fox, I guess. But I guess there's one thought I can conclude this monologue of mine on – it's that my life certainly changed for the better after I met Cosmo. "

And with that said, Tails returned back to silently working on the appliance. Certainly, some things in the fox's life just never change. But when it came to the things that did change, there was still more for him to look forward to.

* * *

 _Gaaah. I completely fluffed that chapter end (Or the entire chapter, for that matter), didn't I?  
Anyway, I guess that does mean I'm no longer buried deep in work, and I'm finally out of writer's block. Although I'll probably be taking a break from this fic yet again. This time, it's related to a certain other fandom that I've been getting into recently.  
And with that said...Darky Out!_


End file.
